Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 : M.K. Stalin Defeated After 35 Years

Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 : M.K. Stalin Defeated After 35 Years

Chennai, May 5, AIMA Media Update News : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin (Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin), who contested the state assembly elections from the Kolathur constituency, suffered a defeat at the hands of TVK candidate V.S. Babu. This marks the first defeat in Stalin's 35-year-long political career. In this election, V.S. Babu secured 82,997 votes, establishing a lead of 8,795 votes over Stalin. While Stalin received 74,202 votes, Santhana Krishnan of the AIADMK secured 18,430 votes. First elected as an MLA in 1989, Stalin had previously won four times from the Thousand Lights constituency and three times from Kolathur. It is noteworthy that V.S. Babu, the candidate who defeated Stalin, is a former leader of the DMK.

Having been associated with the DMK for a considerable period, V.S. Babu served as the MLA for the Purusawalkam constituency from 2006 to 2011. In the 2011 elections, that constituency was dissolved following a delimitation exercise. At that juncture, M.K. Stalin contested from Kolathura constituency where V.S. Babu wielded significant influence. Although Stalin emerged victorious in that election, questions were raised regarding V.S. Babu's role due to the narrow victory margin. Consequently, Babu left the party and joined the AIADMK. On February 7, 2026, he formally joined the TVK party. Speaking after his victory over M.K. Stalin in the elections, V.S. Babu asserted that this triumph belonged to 'Thalapathy' Vijay.

--- M Venkata T Reddy, News Editor And Investigative Journalist