T.R. Baalu equals P. Chidambaram’s record of winning seven L.S. elections in T.N.

T.R. Baalu equals P. Chidambaram’s record of winning seven L.S. elections in T.N.

By winning from the Sriperumbudur constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, DMK treasurer T.R. Baalu has become the second MP to enter the Lower House of Parliament for the seventh time from Tamil Nadu.

Mr. Baalu first entered the Lok Sabha by winning in the Chennai South constituency in 1996, after an unsuccessful attempt in the 1991 election while contesting from the same seat. He won in this constituency in the 1998, 1999, and 2004 elections. However, after the delimitation of constituencies in 2008, he switched to the Sriperumbudur constituency in 2009 and registered his fifth electoral success in the general election that year.

Hailing from Mannargudi (present-day Tiruvarur district), Mr. Baalu contested from the Thanjavur constituency in 2014 and lost (all DMK candidates lost in 2014). However, in 2019, he entered the Lok Sabha again by winning in the Sriperumbudur constituency. He has also served as a Rajya Sabha member between 1986 and 1992.

Congress veteran P. Chidambaram was the first person to have entered the Lok Sabha seven times from Tamil Nadu. Mr. Chidambaram’s Lok Sabha debut was in 1984 when he won in the Sivaganga constituency. He continued his electoral success from this seat in the 1989 and 1991 elections as a Congress nominee, and in the 1996 and 1998 elections on a Tamil Manila Congress (Moopanar) ticket.

He tasted defeat as a TMC(M) candidate from the same seat in the 1999 election. However, Mr. Chidambaram managed to regain his hold on the seat by winning in the 2004 and 2009 elections. He, however, decided not to contest in the Lok Sabha election from 2014. At present, he is serving his second term as a Rajya Sabha member. He was first elected to the Upper House from Maharashtra, and then from Tamil Nadu.