Chennai: All the 20 mayoral candidates of the ruling DMK and its ally Congress' nominee, an autorickshaw driver, were elected in indirect polls to the top posts in civic bodies in Tamil Nadu and they took charge. Indirect polls to elect chairpersons of municipalities and town panchayats, however, witnessed tussles and high drama in several regions while DMK ward members, violating the party's diktat, defeated nominees of alliance parties in a string of local bodies.
It includes posts allotted by the DMK in civic bodies for elected representatives of allies including the CPI(M) and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK). After angered ruling party's partners cried foul, DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin expressed profound regret to allies and instructed his party ward members who defeated nominees of alliance parties to immediately resign from their posts. Stalin warned them that if they did not quit, they would be expelled from the party's primary membership.
The DMK chief asked his party people to resign from such posts, earmarked for allies. He instructed district secretaries and those in-charge to take quick action in this regard. Stalin chided such party men for besmirching DMK's fair name by taking away seats allotted to allies.
After Stalin's action, allies thanked him profusely and said it was a historic step that would further increase their faith on him and promote goodwill. Following the party chief's stern message, the DMK apparatus swung into action and suspended its Poonamallee town secretary M Ravikumar for violating party discipline. It also relieved N Suresh Rajan, a DMK veteran from his post of secretary of Kanyakumari east party district. He was replaced by R Mahesh, who was elected as mayor of Nagercoil Corporation, following a closely contested fight between the DMK and BJP.
