Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.
For the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), western Tamil Nadu has long been difficult terrain. In Coimbatore and across the Kongu belt, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has held firm for years, backed by entrenched caste networks and social support. This dominance was reflected in the 2021 Assembly elections, when the AIADMK won nine out of 10 constituencies in Coimbatore district, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) securing the remaining seat. The DMK, which went on to form the state government, faced a resounding defeat in Tamil Nadu’s second-largest city.
This trend extended across the wider Kongu belt, where the DMK won negligible seats despite its statewide victory, underscoring the region’s long-standing resistance to the party. This election, however, the DMK is attempting to shift that balance, fielding three-time Karur MLA Senthil Balaji in Coimbatore South — a move political observers describe as a calculated bid to break into an AIADMK bastion. The party has also stepped up its campaign in the region, banking on welfare schemes and its Dravidian ideological plank.
For the DMK, there are early signs of movement. In local body elections, the party performed notably well in Coimbatore district, a key part of the Kongu region. At the same time, the AIADMK’s alliance with the BJP may have complicated its position, with several minority groups shifting their support to the DMK following the alliance.
On the ground, however, voting continues to be shaped by a complex mix of factors. Cash-for-votes remains an entrenched practice, acknowledged by workers from both the AIADMK and DMK, with voters often demanding money in exchange for support. The only exception, many said, is actor-turned-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), whose supporters back him more as fans than for a defined political stance. Concerns have also been raised about younger supporters backing him without clarity on his politics, something many attribute to the lack of student politics in Tamil Nadu.
TNM travelled through Coimbatore and Tiruppur to understand these electoral currents. Political observers and party workers spoke to us about the central role of caste, the impact of industry-related policies, and, to a lesser extent, communal polarisation attempts by the BJP.
In the Kongu belt, caste continues to override most other considerations at the polling booth, demarcating the region’s social, economic, and political life.
The Kongu Vellalars, also known as Gounders, classified as Backward caste in Tamil Nadu, make up almost 30% of the populace across the region’s 12 districts. They dominate agriculture and industry and also occupy positions of power in all the major parties. The Dalit Arundhatiyars (Scheduled Caste) form around 17–18%, alongside other castes including Naidus, Chettiyars, Pillais, Mudaliars, and Brahmins.
Writer and advocate R Murugavel said the green revolution put enormous wealth in the hands of the Kongu Vellalars, who then moved into cities.
“The DMK and the Congress, the two powerful parties of the time, could not accommodate the Kongu Vellalars in key positions. They then turned to the AIADMK,” he said, adding that the AIADMK is essentially “a child of the green revolution.” The influence of the caste group within the party was so significant that during J Jayalalithaa’s chief ministership, eight of the state’s ministers were Kongu Vellalar.
At the same time, the influx of Kongu Vellalars into the AIADMK also led to Arundhatiyar voters shifting to the DMK, Murugavel said.
Other parties have tried to tap into this voter base by promoting Kongu Vellalar faces, such as the BJP’s Annamalai or DMK’s Senthil Balaji. “The BJP tried to sway the Gounder base by fielding Annamalai,” Murugavel said, adding that the former IPS officer became an aspirational figure in the region, winning around 4.5 lakh votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
It was with an eye on this same voter base that the regional outfit Kongunadu Makkal Desiya Katchi (KMDK) was formed in 2009. The party’s Coimbatore district secretary KS Dhanapal is of the opinion that all Kongu Vellalars have now moved from the AIADMK to the KMDK. “We even have a large number of Arundhatiyars among us,” he added.
But Dhanapal’s claims do not stand up to the scrutiny of numbers. The party, which positioned itself as being for and of the ‘Kongu Vellalars’, initially partnered with the BJP but exited the alliance after it was not given the chairmanship of the Coir Board, which it had been promised if it lost the Pollachi seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. In 2019, it joined hands with the DMK. Of the three assembly seats it contested in 2021, it won just one. In 2026, it has only been allocated two seats. “There are several regional parties in the alliance, and everyone needs to be satisfied,” Dhanapal said, justifying the low number of seats assigned to the party.
Caste, here, does not merely dictate who is fielded in elections. In Avinashi, an SC-reserved constituency in Tiruppur district, dominant caste families boycotted a school in 2018 because the cook belonged to the Arundhatiyar caste.
Bharathi Subbarayan, leader of the movement Naveena Manitharkal Amaippu, pointed out how political alliances between caste-based parties do not erase casteism. “The VCK (a party of the Dalit Paraiyar caste) and DMK are in alliance. But during campaigning, VCK people will exit the convoy when they approach a Kongu Vellalar region, as lowered castes are not welcome there,” he said.
The Kongu region accounts for around 40% of Tamil Nadu’s GDP, driven by its industrial base. Unsurprisingly, economic issues — especially those affecting micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) — weigh heavily on voters’ minds.
“In the last five years, electricity board (EB) tariff has been hiked by almost 35%,” said A Suresh Kumar, proprietor of Sree Guru Weaving. This hike has been at the heart of the discontent among MSMEs in Coimbatore and Tiruppur. According to Suresh, the increase has led to surges in production cost and wages, as textiles are both power- and labour-intensive.
With limited room to raise prices and remain globally competitive, profit margins have shrunk. “Almost 20–30% of small scale producers were forced to shut shop,” he said.
The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO) announced EB tariff hikes following the implementation of the Union government’s Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) in 2015. The UDAY scheme required state governments to take over the debts of state-owned discoms, thereby necessitating TANGEDCO to hike tariffs.
The dissatisfaction over the move, however, is majorly directed at the DMK in the state.
“Only about 20% of those in the MSME industry are aware of the details. The remaining 80% merely saw TANGEDCO increasing the tariff, and hence their anger is directed at the DMK,” said Mohan Kumar of Rainbow Garments, Palladam.
“Unless the Union government implements one-nation-one-grid-one-tariff, issues will continue in the sector,” said Southern India Mills Association general secretary Dr K Selvaraj. “A policy revamp is required and a central energy council should be set up along the lines of the GST council,” he added.
The EB tariff hikes also came at a time when many in the industry were already hit by the implementation of the GST regime and cotton import restrictions, and it compounded their pressures.
“The GST regime took cash out of the business. Every transaction was done via a bank account. But this is unviable for extremely small businesses who cannot afford to hire an auditor or file the returns required by GST,” Mohan explained. “What happened was, relatively big businesses like us also were forced to stop doing business with them, as we could not pay or receive cash.”
Naveena Manitharkal Amaippu leader Bharathi Subbarayan pointed out that the textile exports doubled between 2004 and 2014, where as it went down between 2014 and 2024. He said that the Union government’s requirement that artificial fibres like viscose and polyester importers clear India’s quality assurance check (QAC) has also led to a drop in imports, driving up the price of raw materials.
But even as these concerns weigh on voters, there is also the fact that a significant share of MSMEs in the region are owned by the Kongu Vellalar caste, who largely rally behind the AIADMK.
Suresh said the DMK may have fared better if the state government had taken care to directly address the issues of small scale producers. “Neither the Union nor the state government understands ground reality. It is, however, easier for us to access the state government,” he added.
Apart from the Gounder community, the AIADMK had also drawn support from Muslim voters, particularly in Coimbatore district — a base it appears to have lost following its alliance with the BJP. The district has an estimated Muslim population of around three lakhs, and according to Abdul Hakkim, a Jamaat-e-Islami Hind leader in Coimbatore, minority communities in the district have now shifted towards the DMK.
Coimbatore, often described as a self-made city of small-scale entrepreneurs, has also witnessed periodic communal tensions over the decades. The infamous communal riots in November 1997 had left 18 Muslims dead, followed by the February 14, 1998 serial blasts in which 12 bombs were set off across 11 locations, killing 58 people. More recently, a car bomb blast on October 23, 2022, outside the Kottai Easwaran temple in Kottaimedu, disrupted what many described as a fragile peace.
Despite this history, Hakkim said, Coimbatore is now widely seen as an interreligious hub where communities coexist in peace. “BJP shows Coimbatore as a terror place. They claim that terrorists and Muslim extremists are there, and only a BJP government can change this, as DMK is very soft towards this,” he said.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, BJP’s Vanathi Srinivasan secured 53,209 votes, a 34.38% vote share, becoming the first BJP MLA from Coimbatore South since the constituency was formed in 2011. Many pointed to vote-splitting by actor-politician Kamal Hassan’s Makkal Neethi Mayyam as a factor in her victory. However, this time, the BJP’s prospects appear weaker, with the DMK fielding Senthil Balaji and his perceived ground-level connect in the constituency.
Speaking to TNM, AIADMK women's wing joint secretary in Tiruppur Urban West district, Miruthala Nataraj, acknowledged that the alliance may have cost the party minority votes. “We may lose some minority people's votes. We may lose some supporters' votes. But percentage-wise, we will gain some votes. See, when we talk about elections, it's just an arithmetic thing,” she said.
She maintained that AIADMK would not compromise on their own ideology or support the BJP’s, despite their alliance. “There is no compromise with ideology. We are not supporting the BJP’s ideology. We follow Dravidian ideology, which is different and sufficient for our state. But when it comes to working with the Union government, there has to be some understanding with the central power so that we can secure funds,” she said.
She further emphasised the need for a practical relationship with the Union government. “For the past five years, the DMK did not get any funds or major schemes from the Union government. But Edappadi K Palaniswami was able to get 11 medical colleges during his tenure. At the same time, we never compromised on ideology,” she added.
Actor Vijay’s entry into politics has added a new variable to electoral dynamics in Tamil Nadu, many told TNM. While his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), is unlikely to win many seats, it could play a decisive role in several constituencies by splitting votes. What remains unclear, however, is whose vote share it will cut into — the AIADMK’s or the DMK’s. If it draws from the AIADMK, the party risks losing its strongholds in the Kongu region; if from the DMK, it may have to once again work to regain its footing.
Founded on February 2, 2024, two months before the Lok Sabha elections, the party quickly attracted a large following, majorly driven by Vijay's fanbase. It established a presence in Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry, drawing in a significant number of young, first-time voters. Many supporters said they were drawn to Vijay as a symbol of change, though few could clearly articulate what that change would entail.
Raja, a taxi driver in Coimbatore, told TNM he had observed more young people discussing politics after Vijay’s entry. A former AIADMK voter, he said he now plans to support TVK. “My six-year-old grandson asked me to vote for Vijay. My daughters and their husbands also decided to vote for him, so I am choosing Vijay as well,” he said.
While Tamil Nadu has a long history of film stars entering politics, many observers said Vijay’s appeal stands out for the scale of support despite the absence of a clearly defined political position. A large section of his supporters are young, which activists and political leaders linked to the lack of student politics in the state.
“I think we have missed out on the political education of students,” said Miruthala Nataraj, AIADMK leader.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, student politics was informally curtailed on campuses in Tamil Nadu. According to reports, nearly 95% of state colleges have lacked active student unions since then.
“As a woman in politics, I agree that we have missed out on giving that political knowledge to our youngsters. But that doesn’t mean the whole (young) crowd will convert into votes (for Vijay). A hero image is different from a leader image. After this election, you will see what kind of politics he is going to do,” she added.
She also stated that if the AIADMK returned to power, it would work towards reviving campus politics. “This is something I believe all political parties need to address, not just the AIADMK,” she said.
Despite this uncertainty, one distinction stood out. Unlike other parties, TVK supporters do not expect money to attend events or vote.
In Tamil Nadu, cash-for-votes remains a widely acknowledged practice, with many saying it is not unusual for voters to demand money not just for voting, but even for attending campaign events. “Even if you implement welfare schemes and work at the grassroot levels, people won't vote only for those reasons. Money is an inevitable factor in elections here,” said a senior politician in Tiruppur.
“They openly say they won't vote for us or won't attend campaign events if we fail to distribute money on time,” an AIADMK worker said. “We distribute anywhere between Rs 200 to Rs 2,000,” a DMK worker in Avinashi added.
TVK, however, appears to be an exception in that regard. Its supporters, many of them fans, back Vijay as a hero rather than a politician.