Dharapuram – September 30, 2026

As campaigning intensifies for the Dharapuram Assembly by-election, which has attracted political attention across Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam president C. Joseph Vijay is campaigning in Dharapuram today, September 30.

Chief Minister Vijay is scheduled to address a public meeting in the Maruthi Nagar area along the Dharapuram–Udumalpet road in support of TVK candidate P. Sathyabama.

Security has been strengthened in Dharapuram and surrounding areas ahead of the Chief Minister’s visit and the public meeting. Reports indicate that more than 3,000 police personnel have been deployed at the meeting venue, along the Chief Minister’s travel routes and in areas where large numbers of people are expected to gather.

Police led by Tiruppur district Superintendent of Police Srushti Singh had already inspected the meeting venue and the routes the Chief Minister would take. Arrangements have also been made for traffic control, security in gathering areas and crowd management.

The Dharapuram by-election will be held on October 6, with votes to be counted on October 9. Campaigning is therefore moving towards its final phase.

This by-election also has a distinctive political background.

In the Tamil Nadu Assembly election held in April 2026, P. Sathyabama contested Dharapuram as an AIADMK candidate and won a seat in the Legislative Assembly. However, on May 25, she resigned as an MLA and joined Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.

After the Speaker accepted her resignation, the Dharapuram seat was declared vacant. This led to the current by-election.

Sathyabama, who won as an AIADMK candidate only a few months ago, is now returning to voters in the same constituency as the candidate of the ruling TVK. Her change of party has consequently become one of the main political talking points of this by-election.

The principal candidates in Dharapuram include P. Sathyabama for TVK, S. Suganya for the DMK, K. Bhanumathi for the AIADMK, Lakshmanan for the Communist Party of India and Karthika for Naam Tamilar Katchi. Election reports state that a total of 22 candidates, including these contenders, are in the fray.

Candidates and political party leaders have been actively seeking votes in villages and urban areas over the past few days. Incidents in which members of the public and farmers questioned Sathyabama during her campaign have also been reported in some areas.

Against this background, Chief Minister Vijay’s direct participation in the Dharapuram campaign today is a major event in TVK’s by-election campaign.

Party functionaries have already said that Vijay will speak about the measures taken and the government’s performance since TVK assumed office. He will also appeal to Dharapuram voters to support Sathyabama.

Election preparations in Dharapuram have already progressed. According to information published early on September 30, 1,201 people have cast postal ballots in this by-election.

Earlier reports also stated that Chief Minister Vijay would hold a roadshow in Dharapuram on October 4. Campaigning in the constituency is therefore expected to intensify further during the final days before polling on October 6.

With Dharapuram among the significant by-elections taking place after the 2026 Assembly election, Chief Minister Vijay’s public meeting today is being watched as an important political event in the constituency’s election campaign.