DMK holds second place in both bypolls, cites solo campaign

CHENNAI: The DMK has held on to second place in the Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly by-elections, using the results to argue that its electoral support remains intact even without alliance partners. However, the party's vote count declined in both constituencies compared with the April Assembly election.

The results also underline a changing political contest in the State, with the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) emerging as a key challenger to the DMK, while the AIADMK was pushed to third place in constituencies it won earlier.

In Madurantakam, the DMK's I Paranthamen secured 57,370 votes in the by-election, retaining the party's second position. In the April election, DMK candidate S Amulu Ponmalar had polled 59,838 votes, while AIADMK candidate Maragatham Kumaravel secured 69,284 votes to win the seat.

The DMK has interpreted its performance as evidence of its independent electoral strength, amid claims by some alliance partners after the general election that their support had helped the party win 59 seats.

"It has been proved that the DMK secured votes on its own, without any alliance partners. After the general election results were announced, alliance partners claimed that the DMK had secured 59 seats with their support. But the by-poll results clearly indicate that the DMK won on its own campaign. Now, the alliance parties know the facts," said RS Bharathi, DMK organising secretary.

Dharapuram witnessed a closely fought contest for second place, with the DMK initially trailing the AIADMK during the first 10 rounds of counting. DMK candidate S Suganya moved to second place after the 14th round, pushing the AIADMK candidate to third.

Suganya secured 57,370 votes, against the 64,373 votes polled by DMK candidate T Indirani in the April election. Despite the decline, the DMK retained second place in the constituency.

The party had mounted an intensive campaign in both seats, with DMK president MK Stalin, deputy general secretary Kanimozhi and youth wing secretary Udhayanidhi Stalin canvassing for its candidates. Stalin addressed public meetings in Madurantakam and Dharapuram, while Kanimozhi and Udhayanidhi also campaigned ahead of polling.

Stalin thanked party cadres and alliance partners for putting up a strong contest. He said the DMK would continue its campaign against the TVK-led government, alleging links between the government and corporate interests.

Meanwhile, DMK chief MK Stalin accused Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay of relying on celebrity appeal, financial inducements and government machinery. Stalin also alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct through welfare announcements made after the election schedule was declared.

Claiming that voters had been pressured and money and gifts distributed, he cited videos and media reports that he said pointed to excessive spending. He further alleged that police were used to intimidate people opposing the ruling party's candidates and that government employees were pressured to work in its favour.

Stalin described the outcome as a temporary victory for what he called betrayal politics and claimed that the opposition votes collectively represented a majority opposed to the government. He maintained that the DMK's support base remained intact despite the ruling party's campaign.

He urged the government to focus on public welfare instead of political vendettas, horse-trading and publicity-driven politics.

Stalin also thanked DMK cadres and alliance partners for mounting a strong contest, saying the party would continue its campaign against the Vijay government and what he described as its alleged links with corporate interests.