The ruling DMK has not only wiped out AIADMK in the Greater Chennai Corporation but has also consolidated its stronghold — the core city areas — by edging out the latter to the added areas.
Out of the 200 wards in the city corporation, DMK led alliance won 178 seats. Of them, DMK alone won 153 seats while its ally Congress won 13 seats. CPM and VCK won four seats each while MDMK got two seats. CPI and IUML won a seat each.
AIADMK which had won a record 168 seats in 2011 was reduced to 15 seats in this polls. Five independents won in Tiruvottiyur, Madhavaram, Ambattur and Shollinganallur zones. BJP got a lone seat in ward 134 in West Mambalam.
The urban local body poll results almost resemble the last year’s assembly election where the DMK won all the 16 assembly constituencies in the city. Ironically, the AIADMK had lost even in its strongholds like Royapuram and RK Nagar assembly constituencies which fall in the Tondiarpet zone. The 15 seats won by AIADMK mostly fall in the added areas - Thiruvottiyur, Manali, Madhavaram, Ambattur, Valasaravakkam, Alandur, Perungudi and Shollinganallur.
“Not winning any ward in the RK Nagar Assembly constituency which was represented by former chief minister J Jayalalithaa and Royapuram Assembly seat is a big disappointment. Money distribution by the DMK to the voters played a major role in the election results,” alleged an AIADMK leader.
A DMK leader in North Chennai said AIADMK won a few seats in the added areas due to various factors including rebel candidates and a slender margin. “In ward 7 of Tiruvottiyur zone, AIADMK won because of a DMK rebel candidate who polled 1,200 votes. In Manali zones, the wards have less electorate and we lost two wards by a margin of fewer than 100 votes,” he said, adding DMK government has lined up various developmental works for the added areas of the city corporation which will be implemented in the coming months.