Chennai, March 26 -- The opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) on Wednesday announced its first list of 23 candidates including its general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami seeking re-election from Edappadi constituency for the April 23 Tamil Nadu assembly election. The party also announced that it will contest 169 assembly seats and its allies in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will contest on 65 constituencies. As per an official statement, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will contest from 27 constituencies, 18 for PMK, 11 for AMMK and five for Tamil Manilaa Congress (TMC). Smaller parties such as the Indhiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK) has got two seats, the Tamilaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (TMMK) and Puratchi Bharatham have been allotted one seat each. The first list was announced a day after the party announced 297-point election manifesto for the Assembly election assuring monthly allowance of Rs 2,000 for every woman in the state and a one-time support of Rs.10,000 per family to offset rising costs. The manifesto also promises additional ration benefits such as lentils along with rice, distribution of refrigerators and three free cooking gas cylinders per year for ration card holders. And, free bus ride to men. Edappadi K Palaniswami, popularly known as EPS, served as the seventh Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 2017 to 2021. The 71-year-old leader of the opposition in the Assembly has been representing the Edappadi Assembly constituency since 2011 as MLA and previously from 1989 to 1996. Born in Salem district, where the Edappadi constituency falls, Palaniswami hails from an agrarian family and identifies himself as a farmer. He entered politics in 1974, enrolling as a volunteer in the AIADMK and gradually rose up in ranks to become general secretary. K P Munusamy, AIADMK deputy general secretary, has been fielded from Veppanahalli. He has been the Municipal Administration and Rural Development minister in the Jayalalithaa cabinet, and had also been the party's Rajya Sabha MP (2020-2021) before resigning to take his seat in the state assembly after the 2021 elections. D Jayakumar, a former state minister who has been the TN Assembly Speaker, is contesting from his home constituency, Royapuram in the city from where he was elected in the 1991, 2001, 2006, 2011, and 2016 elections for five terms. He unsuccessfully contested in the 2021 election. He serves as AIADMK organising secretary. The party's Rajya Sabha MP C V Shanmugam, party's four-time MLA, and Minister of Education, Law and Commercial Taxes from 2003 to 2006 and from 2011 to 2013 in the Jayalalitha Cabinet, has been fielded from Mailam. C Vijayabaskar, former health minister, is seeking re-election from Viralimalai. Dindigul C Sreenivasan, party treasurer, who served as Minister for Forests from 2016 to 2021, has been given ticket from Dindigul. Natham R Viswanathan, deputy general secretary of the party, has got ticket from the Natham constituency. S P Velumani, currently MLA from Thondamuthur Assembly constituency, has been renominated. Former state minister P Thangamani, incumbent legislator from Kumarapalayam constituency, was previously elected from Kumarapalayam constituency in 2011 and 2016 where he is contesting again. Another former state minister Sellur K Raju has been renominated from Madurai West constituency, from where he won in 2011, 2016 and 2021. K P Anbalagan, former higher education minister, a five-term MLA, has been fielded from Palacode where he registered his first victory in 2001. The main electoral contest is expected between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA), which also includes Congress, DMDK, and the VCK, and the NDA, led by AIADMK with the BJP and Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) as allies. Actor-turned-politician Vijay is set to make his electoral debut with TVK, attempting to turn the upcoming elections into a three-way contest. The ruling alliance is yet to declare its candidates and manifesto....