Tamil Nadu polls: Seeman's entry makes it a tough four cornered contest in Karaikudi constituency

MADURAI: In his maiden election in 2016, NTK chief Seeman chose Cuddalore assembly segment, hoping that the fishermen votes in the coastal segment would help him. But he could only come fifth. The next election he chose Thiruvottiyur only to be defeated again. Ten years after his poll debut, when Seeman wanted a seat that could give him better results, he chose to look south and fixed Karaikudi.NTK cadres, fondly called by Seeman as ‘thambigal' (younger brothers) say there are multiple reasons for their boss ticking Karaikudi. To start with, Seeman's native village Aranayur near Ilayankudi is located in Manamadurai, the segment adjacent to Karaikudi. Since Manamadurai was a reserved segment, Seeman decided to contest in Karaikudi.The other reason was the good show by NTK in Karaikudi in the previous elections. The party had polled 23,000 votes in 2021, more than the state average in 2021. The third reason was a less intense fight because neither AIADMK nor DMK were contesting in the assembly segment. AIADMK had allotted the seat to AMMK and DMK to Congress.But that has not made the fight any easy for Seeman. Congress candidate, the sitting MLA S Mangudi commands influence in the interior villages of Karaikudi. Not to mention the presence of former Union minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram, who hail from Sivaganga district, where Karaikudi is located.AMMK's candidate Therpogi Pandi is no less a candidate. In 2021, he had polled 44,800 votes, taking on the DMK and AIADMK fronts. Locals say Pandi has a solid grassroot connect, besides the support of sizeable section of mukkulathors who form the single largest caste bloc in the segment. NTK state coordinator Natarajan Duraiswamy said they had started their ground work way back in June 2025 itself. "We have divided the constituency into 12 segments and are campaigning every day through street corner meetings, public meetings, and cycle rallies," he said exuding confidence.While NTK men harp on Seeman's link to the place, his opponents say his switching of seats every election shows his `inconsistency.' "The election here is only between Congress and AMMK," says Sivaganga district Congress committee president A C Sanchai Gandhi.He says Karaikudi was always a stronghold of Congress and Mangudi has a list of achievements over the last five years in his favour. The campaign of Chidambaram and Sivaganga MP Karti Chidambaram would boost the prospects of Mangudi, say Congress men.On the other hand, AMMK hopes that the coming together of AIADMK and AMMK would help the party win. "In 2021, BJP's H Raja who contested as part of AIADMK alliance got 54,000 votes while AMMK's Therpogi Pandi got 44,800 votes. Since AIADMK and AMMK has joined hands this time, it would be an easy win for us," said Sivaganga district student wing secretary, K Sundaralingam.TVK for its part has fielded T K Prabhu, a dentist who is banking on Vijay's popularity. "Our candidate is well known in the constituency for his social service. People see him as an alternative to DMK and AIADMK," says D Suresh, Sivaganga East district executive committee member.In essence, the election has turned out to be a tough four cornered fight in Karaikudi.