TamilNadu: The Tamil Nadu election results are here, and there is a surprise for the pollsters. Actor Vijay’s TVK has decimated the MK Stalin-led DMK while keeping the AIADMK in check. As per the latest trends, the TVK is leading with 112 seats, the AIADMK emerged as the second-largest party with 58 seats, and the DMK third with 47 seats. The PMK is leading in five seats, while the Congress is leading in four. The victory of the TVK, while unexpected, has brought to light a comment by Prashank Kishore that he made in the run-up to the Tamil Nadu elections.
Prashant Kishor’s Vow
During TVK campaign meetings and some interviews, Prashant Kishor said that while Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the most popular Bihari in Tamil Nadu, he is competing with Thala and will make Vijay the Chief Minister. He said, “The remarks they have made about Biharis, god willing, the records will be set straight during the elections. The person who abuses people of Bihar, we will not advise him, we will settle the score this time.”
DMK’s anti-Bihar remarks
Notably, the DMK leaders have frequently given anti-Bihar remarks. The most infamous comment came from senior DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran. In a video that went viral, Maran claimed that while Tamils who study English get high-paying jobs in IT and MNCs, people from Bihar and UP who ‘only learn Hindi’ come to Tamil Nadu to ‘clean toilets’ and ‘sell panipuri’.
More recently, DMK Minister MRK Panneerselvam sparked a fresh firestorm during a public meeting in Chengalpattu. He allegedly stated that North Indians come to Tamil Nadu specifically for ‘meagre jobs’ like wiping tables and doing manual labour because they lack the education and political awareness found in the Dravidian model.
Senior leader and Minister Durai Murugan has frequently used Bihar as a negative benchmark for governance and literacy. On multiple occasions, he dismissed political suggestions or criticisms by stating, ‘Tamil Nadu is not Bihar’.
A New Map for Tamil Nadu
The result is a humiliating third-place finish for the DMK, with even MK Stalin trailing in his home turf of Kolathur.
TVK: 108 – Poised to form government
AIADMK 54 – Principal Opposition
DMK 53 – Historical Low
Others (PMK/INC) 09 – Marginalized
Prashant Kishor’s Blueprint for South
Having earlier managed Stalin’s campaign, PK framed the DMK’s comments not just as an attack on Bihar, but hinted that it was a sign of ‘Dravidian Arrogance’ that would eventually turn against common Tamils too. By successfully managing Vijay and TVK’s campaign, PK proved that the very people the DMK mocked as ‘panipuri sellers’ could out-think and out-manoeuvre the state’s most powerful political machine.
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