Vijay holds massive Madurantakam roadshow ahead of Tamil Nadu byelection

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president C. Joseph Vijay led a massive roadshow through the Madurantakam constituency on Friday, making a high-profile push for his party ahead of the October 6 byelection.

Campaigning for TVK candidate Maragatham Kumaravel, Vijay spent four and a half hours traversing 40 villages in the reserved constituency, which lies in Chengalpattu district, about 80 kilometres from Chennai.

The byelection was triggered after Kumaravel, who originally won the seat on an AIADMK ticket, resigned from the Assembly on May 25 to join the TVK, just weeks after the state assembly election results were declared.

A four-hour campaign trail

Vijay's cavalcade began at Mamandur on the Grand Southern Trunk (GST) Road around 2:30 pm. Riding atop a campaign van alongside Kumaravel, the actor-turned-politician waved to crowds that had gathered along the highway since the morning, despite hot and humid weather.

The roadshow wound its way through a long list of villages and landmarks, including Karunguzhi, the Ayyanar Temple Junction, Mocheri, Thandalam, Perumbakkam, Sempoondi, Elapakkam, Kil Athipakka, and the Melmaruvathur Adiparasakthi Temple Junction, before finally ending at Therady Street in Madurantakam. Along the route, Vijay paused to chat with locals and stopped at a roadside shop for a cup of tea.

Supporters threw flower petals at the convoy. At Melavalampettai, local organizers presented Vijay with ceremonial gifts, including a spear, a sceptre, and a bronze statuette of Lord Murugan.

Crowds bring GST Road to a halt

The heavy turnout caused significant disruption. Traffic along the GST Road was congested from the morning, and the situation worsened once the roadshow got underway.

Although police had set up temporary metal barricades along the route, they struggled to hold back the crowds. Supporters repeatedly crossed the barriers to get closer to the convoy, slowing traffic to a crawl. Police officers said it took more than an hour for the congestion to ease after the Chief Minister's vehicle had passed a given point.

Among those waiting along the route was 18-year-old student Mahalakshmi, who had recently applied to join the voter rolls and is ineligible to vote on October 6. "I am here to catch a glimpse of him," she said, adding that she wanted to see his performance before deciding whether to vote for him in the next election.

Another onlooker, Mohammed Moinul, a young tailor from West Bengal who was holding a TVK flag in one hand and his phone in the other, described the atmosphere simply as a "joyful frenzy."