Pandiarajan, father of health minister seek AIADMK Lok Sabha tickets

CHENNAI: Tamil official language and culture minister K Pandiarajan, health minister C Vijayabaskar’s father R Chinnathambi and deputy CM O Panneerselvam’s son P Ravindranath Kumar are among the prominent people who have sought AIADMK tickets to contest in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. The ten-day long drive saw 1,740 functionaries submitting applications at the party headquarters.
Party sources said Pandiarajan, an Anna Nagar resident for three decades, has his eyes set on Central Chennai Parliamentary constituency.He consulted some fellow cabinet colleagues before applying for the seat. “He said it was to fulfil the dream of Amma (Jayalalithaa), as she wanted to field him in Central Chennai, but could not do so,” said a close associate. Earlier, Pandiarajan was district president of BJP Central Chennai unit and DMDK MLA, before switching loyalty to AIADMK in 2013. If given a ticket and elected, he will have to choose between the MLA and MP posts.
While deputy LS speaker M Thambidurai, who has been making headlines for his vocal attacks on the Union government, filed his application for Karur LS seat, health minister C Vijayabaskar’s father R Chinnathambi sprang a surprise by applying for the same seat. “Chinnathambi appeared just an hour before the deadline and submitted the application,” said a party source.
Pannerselvam’s son Ravindranath Kumar eyes Theni and Virudhunagar, while minister Jayakumar’s son J Jayavardan wants to contest from South Chennai, his present seat. ‘Well-wishers’ have applied for chief minister K Palaniswami’s son Mithun Kumar, and industries minister M C Sampath’s son S Praveen. Most former ministers and sitting MPs have applied for seats across the state. In Central Chennai, there is a contest among former minister Gokula Indira, sitting MP S R Vijayakumar and former MP N Balaganga.
Rajya Sabha MP V Maitreyan has filed papers for Central and South Chennai. North Chennai MP T G Venkatesh Babu wants to retain his seat. Panneerselvam said, “We will hold interviews of the aspirants in one or two days. Over 1,700 having sought tickets shows our party is a massive one.”