AIADMK and TVK Trade Barbs as Tamil Nadu Bypoll Campaign Turns Personal

The campaign for two Tamil Nadu Assembly by-elections has turned sharply personal, with AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami and the ruling TVK exchanging pointed remarks as the October 6 contests approach.

Speaking in Dharapuram, an AIADMK stronghold, Palaniswami questioned Chief Minister and TVK chief Vijay's claims about family values. He said Vijay presents himself as a brother, uncle and family member, but that such words must be matched by how one lives. "Punch dialogues on stage are not enough," he said, adding that he and his colleagues demonstrate these values in real life.

Palaniswami has framed the bypolls as a fight for justice and urged voters to punish the TVK for fielding two former AIADMK MLAs who resigned after this year's Assembly election results and joined the ruling party. The switch has led to allegations of horse-trading, which the TVK has denied.

The TVK hit back, accusing Palaniswami of making personal attacks rather than reflecting on why several of his own party leaders have left. Party spokesperson M Sathya Kumar said the Dravidian party takes things personally and claimed Vijay has never made personal remarks against opposition leaders. He also pointed to the AIADMK's record after former chief minister Jayalalithaa's death, saying Palaniswami has not won elections since then, which is why AIADMK cadre are moving to the TVK.

The stakes are high for both sides. The AIADMK is defending Madurantakam and Dharapuram, the two seats it won in the Assembly elections. For the TVK, which ran strongly in urban pockets but was weaker in rural areas, the bypolls are a chance to expand its rural support, where local and caste equations matter. The party is also working to portray the AIADMK as a declining force under Palaniswami and to draw away its traditional voters.

A sweep of both seats would bolster the TVK's position as a minority government and set the tone for five more vacant Assembly constituencies where by-elections are expected later. The results are also likely to be read as a verdict on the Vijay-led government's performance. For the AIADMK, retaining the seats is a matter of prestige. The DMK, meanwhile, is contesting without its earlier alliance partners, several of whom have joined or backed the TVK.

Vijay launched his campaign in Dharapuram last week and is set to return there on Wednesday.