Chennai: The DMK has identified 70 assembly constituencies as weak spots ahead of the next assembly election and has started giving additional attention to improve its prospects in these segments.The 70 seats include 22 constituencies which were won by a margin of less than 5,000 votes in the 2021 election and 17 that were lost by the same margin. The party has also mapped the segments lost by DMK by a huge margin as `weak spots.’ However, DMK strategists have excluded constituencies held by AIADMK heavyweights such as Edappadi K Palaniswami and S P Velumani and are treating the 31 seats as `difficult but winnable’ and are focussing there.
In Chennai, the DMK considers four segments – Velachery, T Nagar, Virugambakkam and Mylapore as weak. The party is adopting a multi-pronged strategy to improve the prospects in these segments which includes strengthening grassroots machinery and replacing weaker candidates with stronger or fresh faces. The third strategy was to field DMK candidates in segments where alliance candidates are seen as `less competitive’ to take on rivals. For instance, the DMK leadership believes Velachery could witness a tough contest if TVK president Vijay decides to enter the fray. In such a scenario, the party may field its own candidate in the constituency, which was allotted to the Congress in 2021. In T Nagar, the DMK is considering candidates such as former MLA V P Kalairajan to counter the AIADMK-BJP combine, while in Virugambakkam, where anti-incumbency is seen as a factor, a stronger candidate may be fielded. Outside Chennai, the party has intensified its efforts in western Tamil Nadu, particularly in Coimbatore, where it lost all 10 seats in 2021. Former minister Senthil Balaji has opened election offices across all assembly segments, way ahead of other districts for early grassroots mobilisation. Additional focus is also being placed on select seats in northern and southern Tamil Nadu. In Jolarpet, which the DMK won by a narrow margin of 1,100 votes, the party stepped up efforts during its recent online membership drive, a party functionary said. Katpadi and Neyveli have also been identified as vulnerable. In Salem district, where the DMK lost 10 of 11 constituencies, tourism minister R Rajendran has intensified outreach by distributing household articles valued between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000. “The high command feels DMK candidates should contest seats where alliance partners lost in 2021, while allies could be accommodated in constituencies where the DMK is strong, to improve the front’s overall strike rate,” said a DMK district secretary.
