BJP releases list of nine candidates for Puducherry Assembly polls

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Saturday released a list of nine candidates for the April 9 Assembly polls in Puducherry, fielding P M L Kalyanasundaram from Kalapet and G N S Rajasekaran from Thirunallar.

According to the list, A Namassivayam will contest from Mannadipet, V P Ramalingame from Rajbhavan and A Johnkumar from Mudaliarpet seats.

Embalam R Selvam will enter the fray from Manavely, T K S M Meenatchisundaram from Neravy T R Pattinam, and A Dineshan from Mahe.

E Theeppainthan will seek election from Oussudu, a Scheduled Caste reserved seat.

The ruling AINRC and the BJP-AIADMK combine on Friday reached an agreement for the Assembly polls in the Union territory, where the AINRC will contest 16 seats, and the BJP will contest the remaining 14 seats.

The arrangements were finalised after Puducherry Chief Minister and AINRC leader N Rangasamy on Friday held talks with BJP leader and Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya at a private hotel here.

The BJP, from its kitty, has allocated two seats each to the AIADMK and the Lakshia Jananayaga Katchi (LJK), AINRC sources said.

Although Rangasamy maintained all along that the LJK headed by Jose Charles Matin should not be accommodated in the NDA headed by the AINRC, the talks with the Central minister ended in the chief minister agreeing to include the LJK in the front.

In the 2021 Assembly elections, the AINRC contested 16 seats and won 10, the BJP contested nine seats and won six, while the AIADMK contested five and drew a blank.

The single-phase polling for 30 seats will be held on April 9, and the results will be declared on may 4.