Published Mar 06, 2026 | 7:40 PM ⚊ Updated Mar 06, 2026 | 9:30 PM
Kanimozhi Karunanidhi.
Synopsis: Speculation has grown that DMK MP Kanimozhi may contest the upcoming Tamil Nadu assembly elections after party cadres in several constituencies filed applications seeking her candidature. But despite her rising prominence within the party in recent years, insiders and observers say the DMK may prefer her to remain in Delhi, where she is a key national face of the party.
A former journalist, poet and social worker, Thoothukudi MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, the youngest daughter of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, has never taken an active part in state politics and, until 2022, never held a senior position within the DMK.
Instead, since her first nomination to the Rajya Sabha in 2007, she has steadily become one of the most prominent faces of the party on the national stage.
Now, as the party, led by her half-brother and Chief Minister MK Stalin, prepares to secure a second straight term in the assembly elections due in a few months, speculation has been rife that Kanimozhi may, for the first time, contest the assembly polls.
In the run-up to the finalisation of its candidates, the party has begun accepting applications from cadres seeking nominations. Over 50 workers from several constituencies, particularly in southern districts, have reportedly filed applications seeking Kanimozhi to be fielded from their respective constituencies.
Over 14 are from the Tiruchendur constituency, while more than 20 applications have come from constituencies such as Thoothukudi, Palayamkottai, Tenkasi and Thiruverumbur.
The cost of each application is not insignificant. Each application costs ₹25,000 for a male candidate, while women and candidates from reserved constituencies pay ₹15,000.
But a senior DMK leader and serving minister told South First that this was pure speculation.
“There is no truth in this news. We have not heard anything like that and there is no such possibility. These rumours are being spread by some people themselves,” they said.
In recent years, whenever Kanimozhi’s birthday approaches, her supporters have put up posters calling for her to move to state politics. One such poster read: “Puram kaathathu pothum, agam kaakka vaa” (“You have been in national politics long enough; come to state politics now”).
Sources close to her say she may also have some interest in entering state politics. But the senior minister mentioned earlier pointed out that Kanimozhi herself has not publicly said anything of that sort.
A DMK functionary, meanwhile, said the possibility of Kanimozhi contesting from the constituencies from which the applications came is slim.
“Until 2 March, there was a possibility that Kanimozhi might contest from Tiruchendur. There was uncertainty over whether [sitting MLA] Anitha Radhakrishnan would contest again. But he submitted his application on 2 March, so that possibility is no longer there,” he told South First.
The same is the case in the Thoothukudi assembly constituency, where the sitting MLA Geetha Jeevan has already submitted her application.
Moreover, senior journalist Nakkheeran N Prakash told South First that the party leadership may not want Kanimozhi to return from national politics.
“Kanimozhi may have an interest in moving into leadership roles, but the DMK leadership sees her as the party’s key face in Delhi. They want her to remain there, which is why she has been given those responsibilities,” he said.
“When lakhs of party cadres submit applications to contest elections, the fact that 50 people have filed applications seeking a ticket for Kanimozhi will not make a major difference.”
In fact, Karunanidhi is said to have first sent Kanimozhi to Delhi following the fallout with the Maran brothers, as he wanted a trusted representative in the national capital.
Prakash noted that Karunanidhi never encouraged Kanimozhi to take an active part in state-level politics, and that during his lifetime she was not given major organisational posts in the party.
It was only after the party returned to power in 2021 that Chief Minister MK Stalin appointed her as the DMK deputy general secretary.
After her arrest in the 2G spectrum case in 2011, Kanimozhi spent six months in Tihar Jail. Former Telecom Minister and current Nilgiris MP A Raja was also jailed in the same case.
This episode is often seen as a major turning point in Kanimozhi’s political career. In 2013, she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha for a second time. In 2019, she contested the Lok Sabha polls for the first time from Thoothukudi and was re-elected in 2024.
Since then, regardless of whether she wishes to enter state politics, Kanimozhi’s prominence within the DMK has been rising.
Among the party’s seven deputy general secretaries, she is the only one with a dedicated office at the party headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, which was allotted last year.
She has also been given greater responsibility in alliance negotiations and in bringing parties into the DMK-led coalition.
“It was Kanimozhi who played a key role in bringing the DMDK, which had stayed away from the DMK alliance, into the coalition. The leadership is very happy about it. She also played an important role in resolving the recent dispute between the DMK and Congress,” a source close to Kanimozhi told South First.
During the fractious, weeks-long seat-sharing negotiations between the DMK and Congress, Kanimozhi was also reportedly the first point of contact in the DMK.
The source said Kanimozhi carried out the initial damage control as tensions between the two parties escalated before the matter reached Stalin, which helped resolve the dispute.
“Looking at all this, there is definitely a possibility that Kanimozhi may take her first step into state politics this time,” the source said.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
