The Congress has wrested the Madurai West Assembly seat from the AIADMK by defeating its candidate by a margin of over 31,000 votes in the by-election held on June 26.
Out of the 1.75 lakh valid votes polled, K S K Rajendran (Congress) secured 60,933 votes while AIADMK’s Selur Raju got 29,818 votes and the newly formed Desiya Murpokku Dravika Kazhagam’s Sivamuthukumaran got 21,272 votes.
The remaining 25 candidates, including that of the BJP, lost their security deposit. Mr Rajendran has polled more than the combined vote of the AIADMK and the DMDK. So the AIADMK cannot accuse the DMDK of having spoiled its chances. The by-election was caused by the death of S V Shanmugham, who in his last days moved closer to the DMK and was sidelined by the AIADMK.
The Congress candidate, who is close to M K Azhagiri, was backed by the DMK and other allies of the DPA in Tamil Nadu.
 BLAST: MUNICIPAL CHAIRMAN KILLED
Sivaganga (TN), pti: Two persons, including Sivaganga Municipality Chairman P Murugan, were killed and 10 injured when a powerful bomb blast ripped through his car in front of the Municipal Office on Friday.
Police, quoting eyewitnesses, said the bomb exploded the moment Murugan, a leader of the state’s ruling DMK, got into his car at 1:30 pm after finishing work at the office near the bus stand.