The heat of poll has not deterred the leaders of AINRC and its rival Congress in Puducherry to skip the campaign trail and rush to Kerala to attend a marriage.
Lieutenant Governor Virendra Kataria and his predecessor Iqbal Singh were also among those who attended the marriage of Congress MLA E Valsaraj’s daughter in Thrissur on Monday.
Political leaders, who took a day’s break to attend the marriage included Chief Minister N Rangasamy, Union Minister V Narayanasamy, speaker V Sabapathy, opposition leader V Vaithilingam, PCC chief A V Subramanian, ministers P Rajavelu, N G Pannerselvam, T Thiagarajan apart from Congress MLAs Malladi Krishna Rao and Namassivayam.
R Radhakrishnan, who was annouced as AINRC’s Lok Sabha candidate, also didn’t mind to attend the wedding of his former party colleague. Radhakrishan had quit Congress last year to join the Rangasamy-led party. Radhakrishnan has anyway not officially started his campaign despite announcement of candidature by Rangasamy.
Interestingly, Mahe Congress leader Valsaraj’s daughter Greeshma tied the knot with late Kerala CPM leader E Balanandan’s grandson, Arun.
The political leadership in Kerala too found time to attend the marriage in the central Kerala town. Senior CPM leaders, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, E P Jayarajan, Kerala Chief Minister Oomman Chandy and Kerala PCC chief V M Sudheeran were prominent leaders who attended the function despite their busy campaign schedule.
Though leaders of AINRC and its parent party Congress took part in the marriage, it was business as usual for candidates of Dravidian parties in the Union Territory.
DMK candidate AMH Nazeem and AIADMK candidate M V Omalingam went ahead with the campaigns in Puducherry and Yanam respectively.