Chennai: AIADMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa won the RK Nagar bypolls with a huge margin of over 1.5 lakh votes on Tuesday.
The counting of votes in RK Nagar bypolls began at 8 am today, where elections were conducted on June 27.
With this bypoll, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has returned to the state assembly after being convicted in the disproportionate assets case in 2014.
Jayalalithaa returned as Chief Minister on May 23 following a seven-month hiatus, which was forced by her conviction in the case by a Bengaluru special court.
Notably, North Chennai, under which RK Nagar falls, has a sizable working class population and the area is a cradle for the growth and development of the trade union movement since the early 20th century.
The constituency faces several issues, including drinking water problem, congestion and pollution to name a few. It is considered an AIADMK stronghold as the party has won it thrice in a row (2001, 2006 and 2011) besides in 1977 and 1991.
Although not contesting this bypoll, principal opposition DMK had won the seat only twice — in 1989 and 1996. On both occasions, it had captured power in the state.
Since it came to power in 2011, AIADMK has won all the six by elections held in Tamil Nadu, this being the seventh.
