Ram SundaramChennai: Tamil Nadu Traders’ Federation, led by AM Vikramaraja, who son was elected as an MLA in a DMK ticket in 2021, has said it was yet to decide if it would continue the support to DMK in 2026 election.
The influential traders federation was formed during the tenure of former chief minister M Karunanidhi after a split from the parent body headed by Vellaiyan that largely backed the AIADMK. Vikramaraja has said that the Federation’s support will depend on written assurance from the parties to fulfill demands raised by the trading community. However, sources close to Vikramaraja the decison would also depend on the probablity of his son getting a ticket. Vikramaraja’s son, Prabhakara Raja, who won the Virugambakkam seat on a DMK ticket in 2021, is seeking renomination. At the same time, DMDK leader Premalatha, keen to contest from Rishivandiyam where Vijayakanth won in 2011, has kept Virugambakkam as a second option. Since she is now part of DMK alliance, there is uncertainty over allocation of the seat.It was in this backdrop that Vikramaraja met AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami few days back and submitted a list of demands for the party’s election manifesto. “When elections approach, we meet party leaders to submit our problems. If they include them in their manifestos, we can later ask them to implement those promises,” he told TOI. Vikramaraja said he had also met Stalin and there was no politics behind meeting EPS. “My son may be a DMK MLA, but our association has no place for politics. We have always been a traders’ party,” he added.
