Campaign in Erode East Yet to Pick up Momentum

Chennai: Campaign for the February 5 Erode East by-election is yet to pick up momentum as the candidates representing registered active political parties, the DMK and the Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK), are gearing up to file the nominations only on Friday before launching an acrimonious attack against each other.
Though the Assembly by-election is inconsequential – whoever wins, the overall political scenario will not be altered – the fight could well be rancorous as the NTK that had already launched a vitriolic broadside against Dravidar Kazhagam founder Periyar E V Ramsamy with its Chief Coordinator Seeman all set to go all out to prove his credentials as an anti-Dravidian firebrand politician.
His latest attacks on Periyar had already earned encomiums for him from Hindutva leaders, who have come to see him as the only worthy anti-Dravidian ideologue in the State’s political firmament that is distinctly ‘black’ now with a pro-Dravidian contour dominating the narrative.
So there is every possibility of the BJP, which is boycotting the by-election, urging its members and supporters to vote for the NTK candidate, M K Seethalakshmi. However, it is doubtful if the AIADMK and DMDK that are also keeping off the polls, can openly support and canvas votes for Seeman’s party.
The ruling DMK, however, has a long list of ‘achievements’ to boast about and seek votes from the people of the Assembly constituency, who had anyway voted for the DMK-led Coalition in the main election, sending Congress candidate and Periyar’ great grandson Thirumagan Evera to the Assembly in 2021.
Since the people also overwhelmingly voted for Thirumagan’s father and veteran Congress leader E V K S Elangovan in the 2023 by-election, the chances of the tables turning against the DMK-led coalition on February 5 is rather bleak.
However the electoral fight could be acrimonious if the NTK, given its past penchant for being provocative, turns the campaign into a dogfight. For, the DMK is also known for its fighting spirit.
In the event of the other parties that had not fielded candidates openly throwing their weight behind the NTK candidate with the sole purpose of defeating the DMK, the electoral equations could change in the constituency that had not favoured the NTK in any way in the past.
The opposition parties are only expecting such a change in the scene so that they could go to town with their theory that the DMK government had lost its popularity.
But it would all become clear only after both the candidates, DMK’s V C Chandrakumar and NTK’s Seethalakhsmi, file their papers and hit the campaign trail on Friday.