MK Stalin Optimistic About DMK’s Victory in Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections

NEW DELHI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin is confident that the DMK-led alliance will achieve significant success in the upcoming state assembly elections. He believes they will secure over 200 seats, while also criticizing the BJP’s use of the women’s quota as a strategic weapon against opposition parties.

Focus on Secular Progressive Alliance

Stalin, addressing his supporters, emphasized that the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA)—which includes Congress, Left parties, and the VCK—will dominate the 234-member Assembly and establish what he calls the Dravidian Model 2.0 government. He asserted that the DMK’s governance and social welfare initiatives have strengthened public support over the past five years.

“People have placed immense love and trust in my party, and with their support, the SPA will win more than 200 seats and form the Dravidian Model 2.0 government,” he stated.

Women’s Quota Row

In his remarks, Stalin criticized the Union government for its lack of commitment to implementing women’s reservations. He accused the BJP-led Centre of attempting to use women’s quotas merely as a tactic to counter the opposition ahead of the delimitation exercise.

“The Union government is not concerned about implementing reservations for women… rather than doing that, the BJP-led Centre is thinking of using it as a weapon,” he stated.

Stalin called for immediate implementation of women’s reservation without associating it with delimitation, stressing that states with successful population control measures should not be penalized.

Attack on Edappadi K. Palaniswami

Stalin also responded to the AIADMK chief Edappadi K. Palaniswami’s claims about his family being a “power center,” dismissing them as fabricated distractions aimed at diverting attention from the DMK government’s achievements. He highlighted the failures of the previous regime concerning women’s safety and law enforcement.

“The Pollachi sexual assault case remains a reminder of the previous regime’s failures,” he said.

He further accused Palaniswami and the AIADMK of lacking ideological integrity, arguing that they have become subservient to the BJP.

Criticism of Enforcement Directorate (ED) Actions

Turning his attention to recent actions by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Stalin labeled the agency’s involvement in the TASMAC and sand-mining cases as “Centre produced, ED-enacted dramas.” He claimed that these politically motivated cases are a result of vendetta against the DMK.

“The alleged TASMAC scam and illegal sand-mining cases were politically scripted,” he asserted.

Stalin defended his administration’s welfare schemes, particularly the women’s monthly entitlement of ₹1,000 and the breakfast program for schoolchildren. He promised to raise the entitlement to ₹2,000 and expand the breakfast scheme up to Class 8 in the upcoming term.

As the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections approach, with polling set for April 23 and counting on May 4, Stalin expressed confidence that the DMK-led alliance would not only perform well in Tamil Nadu but also in Puducherry, where elections were held on April 9.