TMC(M) Bets on Merit-Based Candidates, Targets DMK Over Corruption

Emphasising that the people of Tamil Nadu are choosing to vote against corruption, he called the TMC(M) a party of honesty. Further, Vasan exuded confidence in the victory of all five seats in the forthcoming Assembly elections.

"More and more anti-incumbency, more and more winnability of our alliance. That means people vote against corruption. We are the party of honesty, everybody knows. We should win all five seats. Candidate selected based on the criteria of merit; each and every one's designation in the party will show their performance. Delhi and Tamil Nadu will be together; double-engine government," Vasan said.

He also released the party's manifesto for the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections 2026.

Speaking to the reporters here, the Moopanar Congress president announced the candidature of VM Karthikeyan from Erode West, M Yuvaraja from Ottanchatiram, Vidiyal S Sekar from Kumbakonam, M K R Ashok Kumar from Killiyur, and Nivin Simon as the five candidates for the scheduled single-phase assembly elections.

Moreover, Vasan said that his party will contest on the Bhartiya Janata Party's (BJP) 'Lotus' symbol as they couldn't get their 'Cycle' symbol. He also criticised the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), saying that the ruling party has immersed its name in corruption, and people are waiting to express their anger in the elections.

"We are contesting on the BJP's 'Lotus' symbol, as we didn't get our 'cycle' symbol. More than the symbol, the work done on the ground is important. The DMK has earned a bad name due to corruption. We will talk about this during the elections. Even the common people have come to know about corruption by all ministers, and people are waiting to express their anger towards them in this election. I will visit many constituencies to campaign for our candidates and the alliance," he said.

Tamil Nadu will go to the polls in a single phase on April 23, with counting scheduled for May 4. The current tenure of the 234-member state assembly ends on May 10.

The main electoral contest is expected between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA), which includes Congress, DMDK, and other parties. Looking to unseat the ruling alliance are the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) with BJP and Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) as allies.

- ANI