Cong bags first 2 seats; AIADMK-AINRC ahead in seven in Puducherry

Ruling Congress today won two seats and was ahead in as many but opposition AIADMK-AINRC combine established leads in seven constituencies in the polls to the 30-member assembly in the Union Territory.

Ruling Congress on Friday won two seats and was ahead in as many but opposition AIADMK-AINRC combine established leads in seven constituencies in the polls to the 30-member assembly in the Union Territory.

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Chief minister V Vaithilingam and health minister E Valsraj romped home from Kamaraj Nagar and Mahe constituencies respectively as the first two results went in favour of the Congress-DMK combine.

However, the All-India NR Congress, floated by former chief minister N Rangaswamy, and his ally AIADMK were leading in five and two constituencies respectively. Rangaswamy himself was ahead in Kadirgamam.

Vaithilingam won from Kamaraj Nagar, newly-created constituency in delimitation, defeating his nearest CPI rival N Kalainathan while Valsraj trounced CPI-M rival T K Gangadharan in Mahe, an enclave of the Union Territory in Kerala. Both won by a margin of over 6,000 votes.

Congress candidates were leading in two constituencies as per trends available at 10.30am.