TVK chief Vijay to contest from Perambur and Tiruchirappalli East

Perambur Assembly constituency in Chennai and Tiruchirappalli East have turned into high-profile constituencies in the run-up to the April 23 election to the Tamil Nadu Assembly as actor-politician Vijay has opted to contest from both the seats. Vijay, heading the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), is not the first leader to choose two constituencies to contest.

In 1991, J Jayalalithaa contested from Bargur and Kangeyam and won both. Following the AIADMK’s landslide victory, she chose to retain Bargur and vacated Kangeyam and became Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for the first time.

K Krishnasamy, founder of Puthiya Tamilagam party, contested from two reserved constituencies — Ottapidaram and Valparai — in the 2016 polls and lost both. Both the constituencies chosen by Vijay have high concentrations of the working class and a sizable chunk of Christians.