It may appear improbable for an opposition party to win a by-election in Tamil Nadu, as ruling parties see it as a matter of prestige and ensure their candidates’ victory. However, this is only a recent trend.
For instance, R. Viswanathan, now a senior Minister in the AIADMK Cabinet, won the by-poll in the Natham Assembly constituency in September 1999 when the DMK was in power. CPI (M) candidate J. Hemachandran was elected from Tiruvattar constituency in Kanyakumari district the same year.
“Indeed, it was a by-election that heralded the arrival of the DMK in a big way. In 1963 in Tiruvannamalai, the DMK candidate P.U. Shanmugam, who later become a Minister both in the DMK and the AIADMK government, wrested the seat from the ruling Congress, defeating its candidate Badrachalam Pillai,” noted Dravidian scholar K. Thirunavukkarasu.
Again, the victory of the newly launched AIADMK in the Dindigul Lok Sabha by-election in 1973 marked the meteoric rise of M.G. Ramachandran in State politics.
The party defeated the DMK candidate in the by-election to Coimbatore (West) constituency. AIADMK candidate C. Aranganayam won the seat and later became a Minister in MGR’s Cabinet.
But, DMK chief M Karunanidhi could turn the tables on MGR in 1984. The party won two of the four by-elections in Anna Nagar and Mayiladuthurai, while the AIADMK retained Uppiliyapuram and Thanjavur.
“Opposition parties can win by-elections if there is a space for them campaign effectively against the ruling party as proved by the outcome of the 1984 by-elections,” said Mr Thirunavukkarasu.
Funnily, the Dravidian parties vied with each other in 1981 to support the Congress in the Tirupattur Assembly constituency in 1981 to curry favour with Indira Gandhi, fresh from her 1980 triumph.
‘Tirumangalam formula’
After 2000, almost every by-election was won by the ruling party of the time. But after what is now known as the ‘Tirumangalam formula’ was adopted by former DMK strongman M.K. Alagiri, it is not enough for a ruling party to win the election, but also demonstrate a massive victory margin.
The first Chief Minister to contest in a by-election was K. Kamaraj, who won from the Gudiyatham constituency in 1954. Ms Jayalalithaa won a by-election in Andipatti in 2002 and returned as Chief Minister.
The first Chief Minister to contest in a by-election was K. Kamaraj, who won from the Gudiyatham constituency in 1954.
