Puducherry Constituency: Congress looks to repeat 2019 magic in Lok Sabha elections

Puducherry [India], April 14 : Congress has fielded 2019 winner Ve.Vaithilingam from the Puducherry constituency against the Bharatiya Janata Party's candidate A Namassivayam in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Puducherry is the only seat in the Union Territory where female voters outnumber male voters.
In the 2019 elections, Ve.Vaithilingam from the Congress gathered 4,44,981 votes and emerged victorious.
The grand old party has fielded him again from the seat.
Narayanasamy Kesavan from the All India NR Congress got 2,47,956 votes while M.A.S. Subramanian from Makkal Needhi Maiam gathered 38,068.
Menaka from Naam Tamilar Katchi and G Thamizhvendan (AIADMK) will also contest for the seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The locals here said that there is a strong contest between the BJP and Congress candidates.
They also put in front of some demands and basic facilities like toilets, drinking water, and sheds to save from sun heat and development.
According to the District Election Officer cum District Collector A Kulothungan, there are 10,23,699 voters, including 5,42,979 female voters and 4,80,569 male voters in the constituency.
Meanwhile, Puducherry's BJP candidate, A Namassivayam, who is also the Home Minister of the Union Territory, expressed confidence in winning the Lok Sabha seat and promised to work for the development of the region.
"We will win the Puducherry Lok Sabha seat," he said, reckoning that the upcoming Lok Sabha elections holds potential for BJP to expand its presence in Southern states.
Namassivayam further said, "There are four regions of the Union Territory of Puducherry-Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, we are doing development in each and every region and it will continue to happen in future as well...We want to make it as best Puducherry."
Expressing confidence in securing the Puducherry Lok Sabha seat, he also pledges effective work for the region's development.
Former Chief Minister of Puducherry Narayanasamy on Sunday expressed confidence in Congress in winning the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and claimed that BJP will be wiped out in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu.
Narayanasamy also questioned the BJP's failure to deliver full statehood despite holding power both in the Union Territory and at the centre.
According to Narayanasamy, there is a trend against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, favouring Rahul Gandhi and he believed that this sentiment will result in the BJP's downfall in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu.
"The trend seems to be against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and in favour of Rahul Gandhi. The people who are seeing the personality of Rahul Gandhi, it more acceptable than Modi. Therefore, the BJP will be wiped out in Tamil Nadu and Punjab," he said.
Voting for all 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and the only constituency in Puducherry will be held in the first phase on April 19.
The polling will be conducted in seven phases across the country from April 19 to June 1. The counting of votes will be on June 4.