Counting of votes begins in Rajasthan
Counting of votes polled in seven assembly segments of Rajasthan in November 13 by-election began amid 3-tier security arrangements at 7 counting centers Satuday morning.
In a major shot in the arm for the TTV Dhinakaran-Sasikala camp, the sidelined AIADMK leader is poised to win the by-election for the Radhakrishnan Nagar (RK Nagar) by a massive margin of votes.
After 11 rounds of voting, Dhinakaran, the nephew of Jayalalitha’s close aide Sasikala polled over 64,000 votes — 50 per cent of the total votes counted and took a big lead over his rivals, AIADMK’s Madhusudhanan (33,000 votes) and DMK’s Maruthuganesh (17, 140 votes).
There will be 19 rounds of counting.
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The high-stakes constituency that fell vacant after the death of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa is a prestige battle between Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami, his deputy O Panneerselvam of the AIADMK and Dhinakaran.
Many believe that Dhinakaran, if he manages to win the seat will be seen as the heir to Jaya’s legacy as the outcome of the by-election is being seen as a verdict on the ruling AIADMK which has faced turbulence after the demise of Jayalalithaa.
Dhinakaran is fighting the poll as an independent after falling out of favour with Palaniswami and also lost the fight for AIADMK’s ‘Two Leaves’ symbol.
While, there are 59 candidates in fray, the poll is virtually confined to AIADMK’s Madhusudhanan, DMK’s Maruthuganesh and Dhinakaran.
Polling on the seat was held on December 21.
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