AIADMK reverts to Jayalalithaa’s ‘solo’ model of campaign this yr

Tamil Nadu is set to face the Assembly election on April 6, which will be a tough battle for both DMK and AIADMK as this is the first election without Jayalalithaa and former DMK Supremo M Karunanidhi’s presence. As far as AIADMK is concerned, after the demise of its chief, the party has been functioning in a twin leadership model with Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami heading the government and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam heading the party.

Until the 2016 elections, Jayalalithaa single-handedly travelled across Tamil Nadu and campaigned for all the candidates, including ministers. After her demise, in 2019, several ministers travelled and campaigned for all the candidates. However, for the upcoming elections, ministers are confined to their constituencies and it is the Chief Minister, who has taken the role of Jayalalithaa, in carrying out a continuous campaign for the party candidates.

The result of the continuous campaign was visible in the voice of Palaniswami, who in his campaign in the Cuddalore district, on Friday, could not speak clearly due to throat infection. Despite his frail voice, Palaniswami continued to visit all the places planned in the trail.

Political analysts said that ministers were confined in their constituency by DMK. “It was the part of the strategy adopted by DMK to field tough candidates against incumbent ministers to ensure that they remain within the constituency and to work hard for their win. DMK candidates Thanga Tamilselvan, Senthil Balaji and Karthikeya Sivasenathipathi are some of the candidates who will make the election tough for the ministers,” said political analyst Raveenthran Duraisamy.