Reetu Raj, BeyondHeadlines
Chennai: AIADMK seems to be heading for a sweep in the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, having established leads in 193 constituencies in the 234-member House.
The ruling DMK front was way behind, leading only in 38 constituencies, as per the latest trends. Most of the ministers including DMK General Secretary K Anbazhagan were trailing.
The election was fought in the shadow of corruption allegations in the 2G scam and the promise of freebies like laptops and grinders.
The DMK alliance is projected to get 102 to 114 seats and the AIADMK alliance 120 to 132 seats. The AIADMK alliance with a 46 per cent vote share has a clear 2 per cent lead over DMK alliance’s 44 per cent.
In terms of choice of who should be chief minister Jayalalithaa leads the race for the first time since 2001. AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa is set to become Chief Minister for the third time in Tamil Nadu after wresting DMK in the keenly-contested elections in which the 2G scam was a major issue.
Almost 38 per cent people want Karunanidhi as chief minister and 43 per cent want Jayalalithaa – a lead of 5 per cent.
While most voters say they benefitted from the DMK government’s free bees gave thumbs up for the government. Corruption in the shadow of the 2G scam and family rule seems to have gone against the DMK.
About 47 per cent voters feel Karunanidhi is more corrupt versus 21 per cent for Jayalalithaa. Fifty three per cent feel Karunanidhi encourages more nepotism than Jayalalithaa and 33 percent felt Jayalalithaa was more authoritarian and 32 per cent felt Karunanidhi was authoritarian.
Poll Survey predicts a decisive edge for Jayalalithaa’s alliance. And if these numbers are confirmed on the 13th of May then the real test for the AIADMK chief will be on her ability to hold on to her pre-poll allies.
