'Reels CM' and a villain of democracy: Stalin takes the fight to Vijay in Dharapuram

DHARAPURAM: The October 6 bypoll campaign turned sharply personal on Friday, as DMK president M.K. Stalin took the stage in Dharapuram and branded Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay a "Reels" Chief Minister, urging voters to deliver a "fitting reply" to what he called an arrogant and rootless government. Addressing a campaign meeting in support of the DMK candidate, advocate S. Suganya, Stalin said the TVK government had lost the support of the majority of the people within months of coming to power. "I have not come here merely to seek votes. I have come seeking justice," he told the crowd, invoking the Amaravathi river and the town's agricultural heritage before turning to a full-throated attack on the ruling party. The sharpest blow landed on Vijay's cinema past. Referring to the Chief Minister's last film, Stalin said: "He acted in a film titled Jananayagan, but today he is acting like a villain to democracy." The line drew loud applause from DMK supporters, several of whom echoed it across social media within hours. Stalin went further, alleging that the TVK had itself acknowledged political proximity to the BJP. "He admitted that they are a branch of the BJP. He admitted that TVK is just a branch of the BJP. I am glad that he spoke that truth," Stalin said, pressing a charge the DMK has levelled repeatedly since the May Assembly verdict. The DMK chief also attacked Vijay's conduct in the Assembly, saying his gestures had "lowered the dignity" of the House. "Behave like a Chief Minister, not a 'cheap minister,'" he said, accusing the TVK of functioning more like a corporate organisation than a political party. Beyond the personal attacks, Stalin widened the frame to governance. He asserted that the TVK administration's efficacy had declined significantly in just four months, that its promises were unravelling, and that even those who had once supported the party were now voicing dissatisfaction. He ridiculed the Chief Minister's move from cinema to politics as a performance that continued in office, calling TVK a "corporate mafia" rather than a genuine political formation. The campaign blitz is a full family operation for the DMK. Stalin began his Dharapuram roadshow near the Amaravathi statue before addressing a public meeting on Udumalai Salai. He is scheduled to campaign in Madurantakam on Saturday for party candidate I. Paranthamen, while Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin and Kanimozhi Karunanidhi have also been deployed across both constituencies. The stakes are high for both sides. Dharapuram fell vacant after P. Sathyabama resigned from the Assembly and joined the TVK, triggering the very bypoll in which she now contests under her new party's banner. Twenty-two candidates are in the fray. Polling is on October 6 and counting on October 9; campaigning ends on October 4. Vijay is expected back in the region on Sunday, travelling through Coimbatore with a convoy expected to draw large crowds. Whether the "Reels CM" jibe sticks or boomerangs will be decided at the ballot box in three days.