KARAIKAL: The Congress has failed to retain all four seats of Nedungadu (Reserved), Tirunallar, Karaikal (South) and Kottucherry in Karaikal district in Pondicherry. Its ally, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, has retained the Neravy and Karaikal (North) constituencies.

The Congress candidates included two heavyweights, Minister for Industries and Welfare M. Chandirakasu and Deputy Speaker of Pondicherry Assembly A.V. Subramanian. R. Kamalakannan and P.R.N. Thirumurugan, sitting Congress MLAs of Tirunallar Kottucherry, were defeated in their respective constituencies.

A. Marimuthu, an Independent candidate, defeated Mr. Chandirakasu in the Nedungadu (Reserved) seat by a margin of 837 votes.

Mr. Subramanian was defeated by V.K. Ganapathy of Puduchery Munnetra Congress by a margin of 1,773 votes.

Mr. Kamalakannan lost to P.R. Siva of the Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam by a margin of 285 votes.

V. Omalingam of the AIADMK won the Kottucherry seat, defeating his nearest rival Mr. Thirumurugan.

V.M.C. Sivakumar, a former DMK Minister and sitting MLA of the Neravy constituency, retained the seat, defeating his nearest rival V.M.C.V. Ganapathy, an Independent candidate, by a slender margin of 184 votes. Similarly, A.M.H. Najeem (DMK), the sitting MLA of Karaikal (North) constituency, retained the seat, defeating his nearest rival A.J. Assana of the Desiya Murpoku Dravida Kazhagam by a narrow margin of 191 votes.

The Congress and the DMK fielded its five sitting MLAs to contest from their respective constituencies in Karaikal district. The AIADMK-led front fielded new faces in all six seats and won two. Two seats were won by Independent candidates.

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