CHENNAI: A Congress member who contested as an independent from ward 23 in Tiruvottiyur won by a margin of more than 1,500 votes. Rajan V Barnabass said he contested as an independent since he wanted to work for the people even though he was not given a seat.
“Both my parents once held chairman posts. I was able to see the change they could bring when they were in power. I want to continue the same,” he added. His father, V Barnabass, was the Puzhal panchayat union chairman from 2006 to 2011 while his mother held the same post from 2011 to 2016. His sister, Sangeetha, the Congress candidate for ward 31 and also won this time.
Rajan, who contested with ‘match box’ symbol, said he received several petitions to improve basic amenities in the ward. “I assured that I would work to solve the problems. Contesting in a less familiar symbol was not a problem as I had the goodwill of my parents,” he added.
While Rajan secured 3,953 votes, AIADMK won 2,369 votes and DMK won 2,271. “I was temporarily suspended from the party. For now, I will concentrate on doing good work in the ward and then decide about the party action.”