TVK interviews aspirants for Puducherry assembly elections

CHENNAI: With the nomination process for the assembly elections in Puducherry beginning on Monday, TVK started interviewing the aspirants at the party's Panayur office in Chennai.

The list of aspirants for Puducherry, where TVK is preparing for a solo race, included former MLAs to fans and an ex-bureaucrat.Though party president Vijay was supposed to interview the candidates, he rushed to his Foreshore Estate office and later to the party's IT war room at Teynamept to meet party functionaries and political consultants to finalise his campaign schedule for Tamil Nadu.The Puducherry aspirants were interviewed by party general secretaries N Anand and Aadhav Arjuna.

Candidates were briefed on constituency-specific promises, booth-level mobilisation plans, campaign schedules, and logistics for the short election cycle.Among those interviewed were retired IG Murugan, former AIADMK MLA A Periyasamy, and former BJP state president V Saminathan. Party sources said they are likely to contest from key constituencies including Raj Bhavan, Lawspet, and Nettapakkam, respectively.

"Throughout my 35-year career, I never faced a single corruption charge. I believe that under Vijay's leadership we can offer a corruption-free govt in Puducherry," said Murugan.TVK functionaries said the ECI's announcement scheduling the polling in Puducherry on April 9 came as a surprise to the senior leadership, which expected the ECI to hold for TN and Puducherry together. With nominations opening immediately, the party is set to rush through the process of shortlisting candidates.