With the Election Commission of India (ECI) declaring the dates for the elections to the 234-member Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, political parties have fastened up their preparations in a bid to gather the public's support. As per the top poll body, the voting will be held in a single phase on April 23 and the results will be declared on May 4, along with those in West Bengal, Kerala, Assam and the union territory (UT) of Puducherry.
The main contest in Tamil Nadu is between the ruling INDIA bloc and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). The INDIA bloc includes the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the Congress, while the NDA comprises the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
There are several other parties in the fray which are actor-turned-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK), the Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) and the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK).
What the names of Tamil Nadu's political parties actually mean?
As the Tamil Nadu elections draw closer, let's take a look at what the names of political parties in Tamil Nadu mean.
- DMK: Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam simply means Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
- AIADMK: Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam means Anna's Dravidian Progressive Party. By Anna, here it means CN Annadurai, who was the founder and the first general secretary of the DMK.
- TVK: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam means Tamil Nadu victory party.
- DMDK: Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam means National Progressive Dravidian Party.
- NTK: Naam Tamilar Katchi means We are the party of Tamil people.
- PMK: Pattali Makkal Katchi means party of the working people.
- VCK: Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi means Liberation Panthers Party.
- MNM: Makkal Needhi Maiam means People's Justice Centre.
- PBK: Puratchi Bharatham Katchi means Revolutionary India Party.
- PT: Puthiya Tamilagam means New Tamil Nadu.
What happened in previous Tamil Nadu polls?
The previous assembly elections were held in Tamil Nadu in 2021, with the DMK emerging as the single largest party after it won 133 seats. The AIADMK won 66 seats, the Congress won 18 seats, the PMK won five seats, and the VCK won four seats. The BJP, on the other hand, had also won four seats.
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