Telangana: Telangana Governor Tamilsai Soundararajan resigned from the of Telangana Governor and Puducherry Lieutenant Governor on Monday. She is reportedly said to contest Lok Sabha elections from Tamil Nadu on BJP ticket. Last time, in the year 2019 Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekaran resigned from his post to contest from Kerala.
Soundararajan's Political Journey
Soundararajan, aged 62, assumed office as Telangana's second Governor in November 2019 and was later entrusted with the additional charge of Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry in February 2021. It is widely speculated that she intends to vie for Puducherry's lone Lok Sabha seat, currently held by the Congress.
According to reports, the BJP views Soundararajan as having a strong rapport with the people of Puducherry, which could bolster the party's prospects in the region. There are also rumours suggesting she might be nominated from one of three seats in Tamil Nadu, including the Thoothukudi constituency held by the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's Kanimozhi.
Soundararajan's Electoral History
However, Soundararajan's electoral history has been mixed. In the 2009 Lok Sabha election, she contested from the Chennai (North) seat but suffered a defeat to TKS Elangovan of the DMK. Similarly, her bid for the Thoothukudi seat in 2019 ended in loss.
Additionally, Soundararajan contested in three Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, representing Radhapuram in 2006, Velachery in 2011 and Virugampakkam in 2016. Unfortunately, she faced defeat in all three elections, losing to candidates from the DMK and the BJP's former allies, the AIADMK or the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
