Summary:
“We cannot deny the factional feuds in Trichy’s AIADMK unit; like any other party in the state we do have such differences,” a source in the Trichy unit said. However, besides the incumbent MP, as there was no promising candidate, AIADMK sources said they were forced to cede Trichy to the DMDK. It was widely speculated that the DMDK would get Trichy as the AIADMK was not able to find a suitable candidate, with the incumbent AIADMK MP P Kumar reluctant to contest.Kumar, who was first elected from the Trichy Lok Sabha constituency in 2009, defeated Trichy mayor Sarubala Thondaiman by a slender margin. In the 2014 general elections, Kumar defeated rivals DMK, Congress and DMDK by a wider margin. Trichy: Though the AIADMK had won the Trichy Lok Sabha constituency thrice in the past four general elections, the decision of the party’s high command allocating the seat to the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) is being seen as a move to cede it to an ally rather than face defeat due to factional feuds..