CHENNAI: Social worker, Traffic Ramaswamy, who had contested as an independent in Srirangam by-election, garnered 1,167 votes almost as many as CPM which got 1,552 votes. Since the AAP was supporting Ramaswamy, there were expectations that he would get a considerable number of votes.
Though Ramaswamy lost his deposit, this untiring social activist campaigned hard contesting the mighty. During the counting on Monday, Ramaswamy beat CPM candidate K Annadurai in a couple of rounds. In 2011 Assembly elections, Ramaswamy contested against DMK president M Karunanidhi in Tiruvarur Assembly constituency and got 351 votes. Significantly, 1,919 persons have opted for NOTA in Srirangam which is higher than the votes polled by the CPM. The CPM’s poor show despite a vigorous campaign raises the question whether it’s own members voted for their party.