CM Vijay addresses a public meeting at Maruti Nagar on the Dharapuram–Udumalpet Road on 30 Sep for TVK candidate P. Sathyabama; he is expected to speak on the government’s 140-day record.
Update, 30 September: the rally has taken place. Read the full report of CM Vijay’s Dharapuram speech.
Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay will address a public meeting in Dharapuram on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, campaigning for TVK candidate P. Sathyabama in the October 6 by-election. It is his second major bypoll rally, after Madurantakam on September 25, and his first campaign appearance in the Kongu region since becoming Chief Minister.
The meeting will be held in the Maruti Nagar area on the Dharapuram–Udumalpet Road, where a large site has been cleared and a stage, pandal and security arrangements are being put in place. Police have given permission for about 5,000 people (TV9 Tamil, IPD Tamil), and about 3,000 police personnel are being deployed in Dharapuram (ETV Bharat). Traffic diversions and security details. Since the location was announced, residents of Dharapuram and nearby villages have been visiting the site, and senior TVK leader K.A. Sengottaiyan has been overseeing the preparations on the ground (Tamil Oneindia, Maalaimalar).
According to Maalaimalar, the Chief Minister will speak about the TVK government’s record over its first 140 days, new announcements, and the current political and social situation. At Madurantakam he defended the switch of TVK’s candidates from the AIADMK, defended state borrowing as spending for the people, and attacked both the DMK and the AIADMK.
| Date | Campaign |
|---|---|
| 30 Sep | CM Vijay’s public meeting, Maruti Nagar, Dharapuram |
| 2 Oct | Vijay’s road show in Madurantakam; Palaniswami returns to Dharapuram |
| 3 Oct | Palaniswami in Madurantakam |
| 4 Oct | Last day of campaigning — TVK functionaries say Vijay plans a road show in Dharapuram; campaigning ends at 6 PM |
DMK president M.K. Stalin, NTK chief coordinator Seeman and the CPI’s state leadership are also scheduled to campaign in the constituency, according to Daily Thanthi.
Twenty-two candidates are in the fray in Dharapuram (SC). The main contenders are TVK’s P. Sathyabama — who won the seat for the AIADMK in May with 81,100 votes before resigning and joining TVK — DMK’s S. Suganya, AIADMK’s K. Banumathi, CPI’s P. Lakshmanan and NTK’s M. Karthika. Counting takes place on October 9.
Sources: Maalaimalar, Daily Thanthi, Tamil Oneindia, TV9 Tamil, ETV Bharat, IPD Tamil. This is a preview; the rally report will be published separately.
By-Election Dharapuram Day 142