CHENNAI: The campaign for this urban local body election was centred around larger issues and what was missed were the civic issues, which the local body representatives will be responsible for. Both the ruling DMK and opposition AIADMK have turned the polls into a referendum on MK Stalin’s regime.
The DMK’s campaign was centred on how the party fulfilled many of its poll promises within a short span of time. It also positioned itself as the only strong opponent to the BJP, which is in power at the Centre, and the only party fighting against NEET.
On the other hand, AIADMK’s main poll plank was based on the DMK’s failure to meet some of its poll promises. The BJP, which is contesting independently, promised to offer clean governance and painted the DMK as anti-Hindu. As these issues dominated speeches, matters like sanitation, drinking water, transport facilities and drainage that affect the daily life of the people were given a miss.