CM Vijay Leads Madurantakam Roadshow for TVK Ahead of October 6 By-Election
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay held a four-and-a-half-hour-long roadshow across the Madurantakam constituency on Friday, campaigning for TVK candidate Maragatham Kumaravel ahead of the October 6 Assembly by-election. The roadshow traversed approximately three dozen villages as large crowds gathered along the route in the reserved constituency.
Ms. Kumaravel, a former AIADMK Lok Sabha member from 2014 to 2019, had retained the Madurantakam seat for the AIADMK in the 2021 Assembly elections and again in 2026. However, barely three weeks after the declaration of the 2026 election results, she and five fellow legislators resigned from the Assembly and defected to the TVK, necessitating the upcoming by-election.
The electoral contest is unfolding in an Assembly seat reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates, where Scheduled Caste communities account for slightly over 40 percent of the electorate. Vanniyars, who form the primary support base of the PMK, comprise more than 30 percent of local voters. The PMK has announced that it will remain neutral during the by-election following a fallout with its alliance partner AIADMK over candidate selection.
Opposition contenders have sharply criticized the TVK as campaigning approaches its conclusion on Sunday evening. AIADMK candidate S. Kanitha Sampath, recalling her support during Ms. Kumaravel’s 2014 Lok Sabha debut, stated that voters would respond on October 6 to what she termed a betrayal. Former AIADMK minister B. Valarmathi also said constituency residents felt betrayed by Ms. Kumaravel's resignation within 21 days of the declaration of results.
DMK candidate I. Paranthamen described the by-election as an unnecessary poll thrust upon the public in an undemocratic manner, asserting that residents are upset by price rise, electricity tariff increases, and changes to the rural employment guarantee scheme. CPI(M) candidate P. Suganthi said voters backed the TVK seeking change, but the MLA switch-overs demonstrated the party was not different from the BJP at the Centre.
Meanwhile, members of the United Communist Party of India (UCPI) distributed pamphlets near the Madurantakam bus stand in support of the DMK. UCPI State Secretary Bhaskaran stated that while the group is part of the Left ecosystem, it is not aligned with the CPI or CPI(M) and views the DMK as the only powerful ally capable of confronting communal forces in the State.
