Unlike those who launch a party overnight with the dream of occupying the Chief Minister’s gaddi, the DMK was not founded so but it had come to power following the party’s hard work for 18 years, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin said on Saturday, in a veiled attack on Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president and actor Vijay.
“There is only one sun and one moon, and the DMK is only one. Such a movement can never emerge in the land. Some ignoramuses are day dreaming that they could be victorious like the DMK without knowing even an iota of history. Replicating the DMK’s success requires hard work and knowledge,” he said, inaugurating a ‘Progressive Book Fair,’ organised by the DMK’s Youth Wing to commemorate the platinum jubilee of the DMK.
The TVK has declared Vijay as the Chief Ministerial candidate and the film star has reiterated that the electoral contest in 2026 assembly poll is only between the TVK and the DMK.
Not only that, the TVK chief remains a harsh critic of the DMK’s dynastic politics and continues to target the Stalin government on corruption and nepotism. Keeping the TVK cadre in good humour, he had asserted that the party would dethrone the DMK in the election.
The DMK was launched by ‘Anna’ CN Annadurai on September 17, 1949, after coming out of the rationalist non-Brahmin ‘Dravidar Kazhagam’, which was against electoral participation. The party dethroned the Congress and wrested power in 1967.
“While some attempt to intimidate us unaware of the fact that the DMK had come to power after 18 long years of sweat and blood of the leaders and cadre, who gave their life for the party. Countless public meetings, many magazines, books, dramas, films, orientation programmes, struggles and sacrifices. Also, betrayals.
“In those days, it was the salons, tea shops and cycle shops were the joints for political discourse and mobilisation with one person reading and others listening and discussing in between,” the Chief Minister, also DMK president said, adding “the DMK has the credit of becoming the first regional party to come to power in State.
The Chief Minister also released a book “Kaalathin Niram Karuppu-Sivappu – DMK 75” (Colour of the age Black-Red – DMK 75), which had contributions from Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Lalu Prasad, Tejaswi Yadav, Farook Abudulla, Akilesh Yadav, Arvind Kejrival and CPI general secretary D Raja among others.