TN bypolls: Karti Chidambaram criticises TVK for giving tickets to turncoats over party workers

Madurai: Congress MP Karti Chidambaram expressed strong disapproval on Wednesday over the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam’s (TVK) choice of candidates for the upcoming bypolls in Tamil Nadu's Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly constituencies.

Both TVK candidates, K. Maragatham Kumaravel and P. Sathyabama, had previously won their seats on AIADMK tickets earlier this year before stepping down from the party to join Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s TVK.

Addressing reporters in Madurai, Karti Chidambaram said: "I am very clear that the TVK enjoys great confidence among the people and they will win irrespective of the candidates. But, I believe that the candidates who contested and won the elections held in April-May (on AIADMK tickets) and who resigned in June (from the party) should not have been given tickets."

"The TVK should have asked them (the candidates) to wait and should have given tickets to their own cadre who have been with them, their organisation or their fan club earlier. They should have been given a chance. I am personally not in favour of these two candidates contesting again," he added.

Despite his critique of the candidate selection, the Congress leader maintained that the TVK continues to command strong public support.

"The election results will be a reflection of the party's popularity and not necessarily a reflection of these candidates, who I think should not have been given tickets," he added.

The upcoming bypoll in Dharapuram—the first Assembly by-election in Tiruppur district—serves as a vital test for the ruling TVK as it seeks to fortify its legislative standing in the state Assembly, where it currently lacks an absolute majority. Securing wins in both Dharapuram and Madurantakam would significantly solidify the state government's position.

The Dharapuram vacancy arose after P. Sathyabama resigned from her seat following her initial win on an AIADMK ticket. She now faces a competitive five-way battle against DMK’s Sukanya, AIADMK’s K. Bhanumathi, CPI’s P. Lakshmanan, and Naam Tamilar Katchi’s (NTK) Karthika.

During the recent state Assembly elections held earlier this year, Dharapuram saw an 88.84% voter turnout. Sathyabama captured the seat with 81,100 votes, defeating DMK’s P. Indrani (64,373 votes) by a margin of 16,727. TVK candidate S. Gowri Chitra placed third with 46,438 votes (23.23% vote share), while NTK’s P. Divya polled 6,026 votes. (IANS)