Chennai, May 6:
The aftermath of the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly election has triggered internal tensions within the DMK, with a sidelined party veteran openly blaming senior leader P. K. Sekarbabu for the shock defeat of party president M. K. Stalin in his long-held Kolathur constituency.
Former Egmore MLA I. Paranthamen, expressing his discontent publicly, alleged that Sekarbabu failed in his organisational responsibility to safeguard the Kolathur seat, which fell to TVK candidate V. S. Babu.
Stalin lost the constituency by a margin of around 8,795 votes, marking a significant political upset in what was considered a DMK stronghold.
In a strongly worded message, Paranthamen said the defeat was not merely electoral but organisational. “Those entrusted with responsibility must be held accountable,” he said, urging the party leadership to take disciplinary action. He went further, suggesting that internal dynamics and leadership failures within the district unit may have contributed both to Stalin’s loss and to his own exclusion from contesting the election.
The criticism is significant because Sekarbabu, apart from being a senior minister, also held charge as the DMK district secretary for Chennai North (East), which includes Kolathur. This role placed him at the centre of campaign coordination and grassroots mobilisation in the constituency.
Despite the criticism, Sekarbabu himself managed to retain his Harbour seat with a comfortable margin, even as the party suffered major setbacks elsewhere. The contrast between his personal victory and Stalin’s defeat has further intensified internal scrutiny within party ranks.
Political observers say the episode reflects deeper fault lines within the DMK following a historic electoral setback. “When a party leader loses his own bastion, questions are inevitable. What we are seeing now is the beginning of internal accountability debates,” a political analyst noted.
The defeat of Stalin—who had held Kolathur since 2011 and won by large margins in previous elections—has been described as one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 polls, underscoring the scale of the political shift brought about by the rise of TVK led by Vijay.
As the DMK begins introspection after the electoral setback, voices like Paranthamen’s highlight a growing demand within the party for accountability, transparency, and a reassessment of leadership strategies in the face of a rapidly changing political landscape.