States » SouthPosted at: Sep 19 2026 4:58PM


After last date for withdrawals, 49 candidates in fray for Oct 6 Assembly bypoll to two TN seats

Chennai, Sep 19 (UNI) A total of 49 candidates are in the fray for the October six Tamil Nadu Assembly by-elections to the reserved Madurantakam and Dharapuram seats after the last date for withdrawals ended on Saturday.
The seats fell vacant following the resignation of Rebel AIADMK MLAs leading to the bypolls.
A total of 99 nominations were filed, of them 50 were accepted and 49, most of them Independents, were rejected during scrutiny.
Official sources said of the total 48 papers filed in Madurantakam (35 men, 13 women) 28 were accepted and 20 rejected. In Dharapuram a total of 51 candidates (23 men, 28 women) have filed their papers of which 22 were accepted and 29 rejected.
It said the nominations of candidates of all the five leading parties -- ruling TVK, Opposition DMK, AIADMK, NTK, CPI and CPI-M, were found in order and accepted.
On the last day for withdrawals today, a woman Independent candidate withdrew her papers leaving 27 in fray for the Madurantakam seat. There were no withdrawals in Dharapuram, leaving 22 candidates vying for the seat.
Those in the race in the tough five-cornered contest are candidates of the ruling TVK, which had expectedly fielded turncoats Ms.K.Maragatham Kumaravel (Madurantakam) and Ms.P.Sathyabama (Dharapuram) -- who had held the seat before they quit the AIADMK and joined the TVK resulting in bypolls.
Apart from Maragatham Kumaravel, DMK's I.Paranthaman, former MLA Ms.Kanitha Sampath of AIADMK, Ms.P.Suganthi of CPI-M and Naam Tamizhar Katchi (NTK)'s K,Janakiraman are in the fray in Madurantakam, while Sathyabama (TVK), Ms.Suganya (DMK), AIADMK's Ms.K.Bhanumathi, P.Lakshmanan of CPI and NTK's M.Karthika are main contestants in Dharapuram. The rest were Independents.
The entry of the Left Parties, which was extending outside support to the TVK government and entered the fray on its own, has converted the bypolls--seen as a referendum to the four-month-old Vijay government-- into a five-cornered contest.
The entry of the left parties into the fray, while asserting that there would be no threat to the stability of the Vijay government and that their committed outside support to it would continue, has caused surprise in political surprises, including among the TVK and its other allies. However, CPI State Secretary M.Veerapandian and his CPI(M) counterpart P.Shanmugam justified their decision saying they were not part of any of the three fronts headed by the formidable TVK, which has Congress, VCK and IUML and MDMK, the DMK-led SPA, which had faced significant post-poll desertions and now left with DMDK as its lone ally, and the AIADMK-heading NDA that also has BJP, PMK and AMMK.
Shanmugam also categorically stated that not supporting TVK does not mean that the left parties are indirectly supporting the DMK in the bypolls. It is a wrong notion and not acceptable. We are not part of any of the three fronts. We have decided to contest, as this is neither a general election or intended for a regime change. It's a byelection and we (the CPI andCPI-M) have fielded candidates against all the three fronts.
Meanwhile, for the bypoll to the Thattanchavady Assembly constituency in neighbouring Puducherry, a total of 11 candidates are in the fray. Among the key candidates in the four-cornered contest included ruling AINRC nominee and former MLA Ashok Anand, contesting as part of NDA, E Vinayagam of Congress contesting as an ally of the TVK,, DMK's K Sethu alias Sethuselvam, and CPI's A Mohamed Saleem.
The bypoll was caused following the resignation of Chief Minister and AINRC Founder N.Rangasamy, who had won from two seats in the April 9 elections, and chose to retain the Mangalam seat.
UNI GV 1650
Tags: #After last date for withdrawals# 49 candidates in fray for Oct 6 Assembly bypoll to two TN seats
More News

Over 150 women trained in two-wheeler riding under ‘RB For Women’ initiative in Kochi

19 Sep 2026 | 6:46 PM

Kochi, Sep 19 (UNI) More than 150 women participated in a two-wheeler riding training programme organised by Royal Brothers, in partnership with Moto Business Service India (MBSI), a subsidiary of Yamaha Motor, Japan, in Kochi on Saturday.

see more..

BPCL’s commitment to skill development commendable: Jayant Chaudhary

19 Sep 2026 | 6:43 PM

Kochi, Sep 19 (UNI) union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary on Saturday commended Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) for its decade-long commitment to skill development through the Skill Development Institute (SDI), Kochi.

see more..

102 candidates get appointment letters at Kochi Rozgar Mela

19 Sep 2026 | 6:41 PM

Kochi, Sep 19 (UNI) As many as 102 newly appointed candidates received appointment letters at a Rozgar Mela organised here on Saturday by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) as part of the 20th tranche of the national-level Rozgar Mela.

see more..

E-auto subsidy: Applications to open from Sep 25

19 Sep 2026 | 6:38 PM

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 19 (UNI) The Kerala Government will provide a subsidy of Rs 30,000 to owners of electric passenger autorickshaws under its e-mobility promotion scheme, with online applications to be accepted from September 25.

see more..

AP: Highest number of 706 snake bites reported in Srikakulam district: Minister

19 Sep 2026 | 6:36 PM

Vijayawada, Sep 19 (UNI) Srikakulam district recorded the highest number of snakebite cases in Andhra Pradesh between January and August this year, with 706 cases, Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav said on Saturday.

see more..