AIADMK and AMMK Forge Alliance to Reclaim Thevar Vote Bank in Tamil Nadu
For years, the political landscape in Tamil Nadu was marked by bitter accusations between factions within the AIADMK. In 2017, when T T V Dhinakaran emerged as the political face of the V K Sasikala camp following J Jayalalithaa's death, Edappadi K Palaniswami's camp labeled him a traitor, accusing him of attempting to hijack Amma's party. Dhinakaran retaliated by claiming he had the backing of a majority of AIADMK cadres, and a year later, he formed the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), further deepening the rift.
Strategic Reunion After Nine Years of Division
Nine years later, in a significant political shift, Palaniswami has reunited with AMMK chief Dhinakaran. This move is strategically aimed at reclaiming the politically influential mukkulathor vote bank, which comprises the kallar, maravar, and agamudayar communities, collectively known as thevars. This community had largely shifted its support towards TTV after the split, impacting AIADMK's performance in southern constituencies during the 2021 elections.
The 2021 election results highlighted the electoral significance of Dhinakaran's return to the NDA fold. AMMK tilted the prospects of the AIADMK alliance in 17 seats and the DMK alliance in five seats across Tamil Nadu, polling over 2% of the votes. Much of this support came from thevar-dominated constituencies such as Kovilpatti, Usilampatti, and Mannargudi. At that time, Union Home Minister Amit Shah pushed for a reconciliation with TTV and Sasikala to consolidate the anti-DMK vote, but Palaniswami refused, leading to DMK and ally Congress winning 39 out of 57 seats in the southern districts.
Key Test for the New Alliance
Ahead of the 2026 Assembly election, a key test for this new alliance will be whether the major OBC bloc that backed TTV will transfer its support to AIADMK. A former AIADMK minister and close associate of EPS stated, "Dhinakaran is enough to get back the thevar votes to us, akin to the influence of PMK among vanniyars. Actor Karthik could have become a major force for thevars years ago, but Dhinakaran makes a difference now by securing votes in thousands."
Several attempts have been made in the past to consolidate the thevar community under smaller outfits. Parties such as actor Karthik's Akila India Naadalum Makkal Katchi, launched in 2009, and the Makkal Urimai Kaakkum Katchi, founded in 2018, all sought to position themselves as champions of the community's welfare but failed to gain significant momentum. The Forward Bloc, led by freedom fighter and iconic thevar leader Pasumpon Muthuramalingam, also lost its steam over the years.
Reconciliation and Challenges
Palaniswami has acknowledged that ditching TTV in 2021 was a mistake. On January 20, seated next to Dhinakaran at a private hotel in Chennai, the AIADMK chief declared that they were "both raised by Jayalalithaa" and that the "differences had been forgotten to continue the work left by the late leader, unitedly." TTV, in turn, accepted EPS as the chief ministerial candidate, a stance he previously opposed. "The Union home minister tried his best to make us united in the previous election, but it did not materialize," said Dhinakaran, who is eyeing 12 seats. "I contested alone which was one of the reasons that Amma govt could not return."
However, not everyone is happy with TTV's decision to join hands with Palaniswami after snapping ties with NDA in September. The recent defection of AMMK south zone secretary S V S P Manickaraja, an influential leader in Tuticorin, to DMK, along with three district secretaries from Kanyakumari and Tenkasi, exposes internal differences within AMMK. In private, AMMK functionaries reveal that several senior colleagues are in touch with Manickaraja to join DMK. The contention is that accepting Palaniswami as the chief ministerial candidate contrasts with the original idea of floating AMMK in 2018 against the expulsion of the Sasikala clan from AIADMK. "We fear there will be no cohesion with AIADMK cadres on the ground," says a functionary requesting anonymity. "For eight years we have opposed them. There is resentment over how leaders like Sasikala, TTV and Panneerselvam were treated."
Influence of Key Leaders and Future Prospects
The popularity of the influential thevar trio—Sasikala, TTV, and former chief minister O Panneerselvam—in the southern region was recently acknowledged by former AIADMK minister K A Sengottaiyan, who stated, "Nothing can be done in 60 assembly seats without them." Now, with Sasikala and Panneerselvam potentially playing spoilsport, AIADMK's big hope rests on TTV. Palaniswami, meanwhile, enjoys the support of thevar community leaders like Dindigul C Sreenivasan, Natham R Viswanathan, O S Manian, R B Udayakumar, Sellur K Raju, R Kamaraj, C Vijayabaskar, and Thiruparankundram MLA V V Rajan Chellappa.
Panneerselvam seeks to retain his Bodinayakanur assembly seat in Theni, an electorate predominantly thevar. Sources indicate that TTV has been telling his confidantes that he would defeat Panneerselvam in Bodinayakanur. However, DMK is consolidating its support base in Theni, as the party's MP Thanga Tamilselvan, also a thevar, who previously had a turf war with Panneerselvam, has buried the hatchet.
Sasikala, who has launched the All India Puratchi Thalaivar Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam, is set to field candidates in the southern belt. Last Tuesday, she visited PMK founder S Ramadoss, who has been in political distress after his son Anbumani virtually walked away with the party. Insiders say Sasikala asked the PMK leader to join Vijay's TVK alliance along with her, but Ramadoss remained non-committal. A minor migration of cadres and functionaries from AMMK to Sasikala's party is giving TTV a headache.
Analysis of the 2021 Election Impact
In the 2021 elections, AMMK contested in 166 seats with Vijayakanth's DMDK, securing 2.4% of the votes polled in the state. Notable vote counts in predominantly thevar constituencies include Kovilpatti (56,153), Usilampatti (55,491), Karaikudi (44,864), Mannargudi (40,481), Thiruvaiyaru (37,469), Melur (34,262), Tiruvadanai (33,426), Sattur (32,916), and Nanguneri (31,870). Many of these seats were won by DMK and its ally Congress, with AMMK coming third; an alignment with AIADMK could have made a significant difference.
These votes were not solely due to anti-EPS sentiment among thevars but also stemmed from opposition to EPS's exclusive internal quota extended to vanniyars on the day of the poll announcement. This move was enabled by halving the Most Backward Classes (MBC) quota in education and employment while striking a poll deal with Ramadoss's PMK.
