Battle without gladiators as Tamil Nadu votes for Phase 2 LS election

When Karunanidhi spoke people listened in rapt attention For Jayalalithaa they turned up hours before her meetings and waited just to catch a glimpse of their amma The two outside of allday road shows used to have one massive rally a day at leastWith both passing into the ages the era of massive rallies also seems to have ended Whether it is because of social media and new age dissemination of information or because the current crop of leaders lacks the confidence of pulling huge crowds is anybodys guessBig day for DMKThe spotlight this time is on M K Stalin in what is seen as his first big test The DMK has allotted 10 seats to the Congress and is contesting only 20 Some consider this as being generous and question the wisdom behind the move Does the Congress have enough clout to deliver in 10 seats in a state where it has been in perennial declineT T V Dinakaran and Kamal HaasanAs for the DMK Stalin has been connecting with the common people during his morning walks via a programme called Nammakku Naame Another plus for the DMK is that the ADMK combine is facing double antiincumbency thanks to the presence of BJP in its alliance As a whole it is DMKs elections to lose and anything under 30 seats will be seen as not a good showWatch VideoAlso ReadElections 2019 In Madurai a rockstar writer revives the CommunistsBumbling ADMKBJPFrom being a strong opponent of the BJP under Jayalalithaa to becoming virtually a proxy state for the Centre the ADMK has come a long way The state has seen protest after protest in the last three years following Jayalalithaas demise and the government has proven itself to be inept at every turn Being subjugate to the BJP not protesting against the allIndia common medical entrance exam is just one such instance has put the party at a severe disadvantage Add to it the soaring antiModi sentiment in the state and it will not be a surprise if the alliance comes a cropper with a single digit totalAlso ReadElections 2019 In Madurai a rockstar writer revives the CommunistsAMMK dark horseSasikalas nephew TTV Dinakaran is the dark horse in this election The ruling alliance has tried everything against him since Jayalalithaas death and he has come out stronger First when he announced his candidature to Jayas R K Nagar Assembly seat the election commission cancelled election citing bribery allegations When elections were indeed held Dinakaran destroyed the field and won a massive mandateIt is said the ruling dispensation then forced private television channels to black him out fearing his rising popularity Then when Lok Sabha elections were announced he was denied the use of his pressure cooker symbol This was not the first time he has had to change symbols and Dinakaran trumped everyone by securing without a trace of irony a gift box as a symbol for all the 40 candidates fighting the general elections and 18 candidates who will contest byelections today If he weans away ADMK votes and does well in this election he may well truly take over the party in the coming monthsAlso ReadElections 2019 In Tamil Nadu the way to voters fingertips is via cable TVThe rest of the fieldRounding off the fivecornered battle in TN are Kamal Haasans Makkal Needhi Maiyyam and director Seemans Naam Tamizhar Katchi While Haasan himself is not contesting he has fielded candidates in all 40 seats Nobody expects him to spring a surprise but wellwishers hope that he doesnt do so badly that his Assembly election aspirations are erased altogetherNaam Tamizhar on the other hand does have pockets of support and has fielded some worthy candidates Seemans party has also created history by fielding more than 50 women candidates in these electionsNo immediate changeAll these factors mean that the vacuum left by the two Dravidian giants will not be immediately filled in this election as many expect The churn may go on for longer the concurrent bypolls are also crucial because a very poor showing may lead to the ADMKs ouster than this Lok Sabha pollsWatch Video Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates