Notwithstanding the recent conviction of the DMK’s Villupuram bigwig and former Higher Education Minister, K. Ponmudy, and his wife, P. Visalakshi, in a disproportionate assets case by the Madras High Court, the VCK is keen on fielding its candidate from the Villupuram Lok Sabha seat as an ally of the DMK in 2024.
In 2019, the DMK allotted the Chidambaram and Villupuram seats to the VCK. However, in Villupuram, D. Ravikumar, former general secretary of the VCK, won on the DMK’s ‘rising sun’ symbol. Hence, technically, the seat was accounted for in the DMK’s overall Lok Sabha tally.
Mr. Ravikumar defeated the PMK candidate by more than 1,28,000 votes. In a constituency where the PMK has significant strength, Mr. Ravikumar’s victory was largely seen as the result Mr. Ponmudy throwing his weight behind him and mobilising the party’s resources to ensure his victory.
In the event of Mr. Ponmudy not securing a stay on his conviction from the Supreme Court, and being sent to jail, it could impact the DMK’s electioneering and affect the VCK’s prospects in the constituency.
However, VCK leaders remain hopeful that Mr. Ponmudy’s conviction would be stayed, and he would be reinstated in the Cabinet. They are confident of retaining the seat, irrespective of what happens when an appeal is filed in the Supreme Court.
“We always seek to retain the seats we have won. So, we will seek to retain Villupuram. It is easier to win such seats,” a senior leader said.
However, another senior leader said that it remained to be seen which seat the DMK was ready to part with this time around.
“Even in 2019, we did not seek the Villupuram seat. It was given to us. Usually, the DMK would conduct a survey to determine the mood of the electorate, and who must contest the seat. There is no guarantee that we would get the same seat,” the senior leader said.
He added that Mr. Ravikumar, who continues to be regarded as a VCK leader despite filing an affidavit in the Madras High Court that he is a member of the DMK, was well placed to win the seat if the DMK allotted it to him again, as he had performed well.
“There has been no communal strife despite [the constituency] being a sensitive area. He has raised important questions on behalf of various stakeholders. Also, the absence of Mr. Ponmudy, in the event of his conviction not being stayed, will not play a big role as far as the Lok Sabha elections are concerned, as the DMK has a well-oiled election machinery,” he said.
