Dharapuram Bypoll Tests Vijay's TVK Momentum As DMK, AIADMK Target Defector Candidate

As a reporter embarks on covering the Dharapuram bypoll, the story unfolds in a reserved constituency in western Tamil Nadu. The bypoll is necessitated by the resignation of the sitting AIADMK MLA and her subsequent shift to the ruling TVK, just weeks after the 2026 Assembly elections. Two bypolls are scheduled for October 6 - one in Dharapuram and another in Madurantakam, another reserved constituency.

While Madurantakam is anticipated to be a straightforward victory for the ruling TVK, Dharapuram poses a significant challenge for Vijay.

A day-long journey through 10 villages and towns in Dharapuram reveals that the bypoll is turning into a three-cornered contest between the TVK, AIADMK, and the principal Opposition party DMK. The DMK has bolstered its campaign by bringing in former minister loyalists and tampering with the bypoll narrative by fielding its candidate with a suitcase to mock the TVK candidate, P Sathyabama, who recently switched parties.

Meanwhile, the TVK has deployed three ministers, while the AIADMK is emphasizing the need to teach a lesson to Sathyabama, who was elected on the party's two-leaves symbol.

The resentment against Sathyabama is so intense that voters feel the TVK could have won the election had they fielded a different candidate. Yet, underneath the political discourse, the lack of sufficient water for irrigation and domestic use remains the most pressing issue in the arid Dharapuram constituency.