DMK Caps District Secretary Age at 70 and Limits Tenure to Three Terms

In a major organisational overhaul following its setback in the 2026 assembly polls, the DMK on Saturday capped the maximum age of district secretaries at 70 and limited their tenure to three terms.

The decision was finalised during an executive committee meeting held at the party headquarters in Chennai. The high-level meeting was chaired by former chief minister and DMK president M K Stalin to reset the party's internal structure.

The new regulations are expected to result in several former ministers losing their district-level posts. Party leaders who are set to be affected by the age and tenure limits include E V Velu, Anitha R Radhakrishnan, S Muthusamy, S Regupathy, and R Gandhi.

Alongside the leadership caps, the party announced a significant restructuring of its regional divisions. Under the new arrangement, the DMK will establish one organisational district for every two Assembly constituencies, aligned with revenue districts. As a result, the total number of DMK district units across the state will expand from the existing 77 to 110.

The restructuring will also extend to lower tiers of the party apparatus. Branch secretaries will now be restricted to a maximum of two terms and must be aged 45 or below. District executive committee meetings are scheduled to be conducted within a fortnight to finalise the operational structures at the union, town, area, and ward levels.

According to a senior DMK leader, the leadership adopted an aggressive stance on lowering age limits following feedback and grievances submitted by party cadres and members of the public through both online and offline channels.