RAMANATHAPURAM : What’s in a name? Apparently a lot when it comes to Ramanathapuram, which will witness a contest between five OPSes, including former chief minister O Panneerselvam. As Tamil Nadu is set to go to poll on April 19, electioneering in the constituency has intensified with the namesake OPSes seemingly banking on the brand of the copyright holder. Pamphlets and posters here are faceless, with just the letters OPS blown out of proportion, allegedly to create confusion.
The Ramanathapuram constituency has been under the spotlight since Day 1, as five independent candidates with the name OPS, including the former CM, filed their papers. Adding up to the confusion, the other four OPSes had sought for symbols which closely resembled that of the original OPS. While, the former CM was allotted the ‘jackfruit’, two other OPSes got ‘bucket’ and ‘grapes’, both of which were also preferred by the original OPS. The third namesake was allotted the ‘sugarcane farmer’ symbol.
All the OPSes are scrambling for votes in the last leg of their respective canvassing trails. Contrary to popular practice, the pamphlets and posters here are faceless. The namesakes have just highlighted ‘OPS’ and mentioned their respective symbols. A local, who will be casting their vote, said, “This seems to be a tactic to create confusion among voters. Although the original OPS’ campaigns with jackfruit cutouts and the spike in the fruit’s public appearance, have created traction for the leader, he is still faced with roadblocks like anti-incumbency, AIADMK’s footprint, and his namesakes.”
One of the candidates, 46-year-old O Paneerselvam of Solaialagupuram (with the symbol of the grapes), who has also employed the pen name ‘Iyya’ OPS given his age, said, “I will win with a huge margin. The first thing that I will do after my victory, is to retrieve Katchatheevu and provide drinking water facilities to the people.”
The lives of these pamphlets and flyers, however, were short-lived. Following complaints by the flying squad and the OPS side, election officials found that the posters in Paramakudi were pasted without obtaining prior permission and were pasted on government building. Official sources said the posters were cleared on Friday.
Responding to the row, MP R Dharmar, who is also part of the OPS faction, said, “People are aware of such things, and especially about our symbol (jackfruit). Such efforts of the namesakes will prove to be futile.”