PUDUCHERRY: Taking a dig at Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and TVK president C Joseph Vijay, CPI(M) central committee member K Balakrishnan on Saturday said the result of the Thattanchavady Assembly bye-election would indicate whether the much-discussed 'Vijay wave' existed.
He made the remark while campaigning for CPI candidate A Mohamed Saleem, who is contesting the October 6 bye-election with the backing of the Left parties.
Questioning Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy’s decision to seek election from two constituencies in the April Assembly polls and subsequently resign from Thattanchavady, Balakrishnan said the move reflected a lack of confidence in securing victory from the seat.
He also targeted the Tamil Nadu government over the proposed privatisation of an airport, asking whether a CM who writes to the centre seeking the handing over of an airport to the private sector would eventually “lease out the entire state of Tamil Nadu to Ambani”.
Referring to Vijay’s political prospects, Balakrishnan said even if the TVK secured a large number of Assembly seats, it would not be able to form a government without the support of other parties. Voters would provide their verdict on the competing claims and political narratives through the Thattanchavady bypoll, he added.
The Thattanchavady seat fell vacant following Rangasamy’s resignation after he was elected from both Mangalam and Thattanchavady in the April Assembly election.