A view of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tirunelveli District, Tamil Nadu. File | Photo credit: N. Rajesh
The Radhapuram Assembly segment, which is represented by Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M. Appavu, a four-time MLA from the same segment, is witnessing an electoral battle between him and BJP candidate SP Balakrishnan, while actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam has also fielded its candidate.
Businessman and politician Alfred Vedam Thomas, popularly known as AV Thomas, the founder of the AVT Group in 1925 and the founder of the Indian tea industry, was the first MLA of the Radhapuram constituency, as he hailed from Azhagappapuram in this segment and was elected to the assembly in 1957 as a Congress candidate. Earlier, Thomas, the first Indian to own a tea plantation company, was the Member of Parliament for the erstwhile Srivaikundam parliamentary constituency as a Congress candidate in the 1951 elections.
After winning this constituency in the first three assembly elections, the Congress lost this segment to the DMK in 1971 when V. Karthesan was elected and YSM Yousuf of the AIADMK won the battle here in 1977.
Published – 03 Apr 2026 21:53 IST
