DMK president M.K. Stalin is attempting to win a second consecutive term for his party, something his father and predecessor M. Karunanidhi could not.

Both the DMK and Tamil Nadu are very different today from what they were before Karunanidhi died in 2018. The party’s all-powerful district secretaries have ceded space to the chief minister’s chosen technocrats.

The candidates fielded by the party for the April 23 Assembly elections point to a generational shift, marked by the rise of the sons of DMK stalwarts led by Stalin’s son and deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin. Around half of the DMK candidates are fresh faces, and at least seven are sons of senior party leaders.

The other major change brought about by Stalin was reorienting populist schemes to make women the principal beneficiaries — a strategy deployed by several states to beat anti-incumbency, given the consistently higher turnout of women in the south and east. The DMK has gone a step further by renaming schemes with more egalitarian vocabulary by using words such as “urimai” (right), and reshaping a scheme providing marriage assistance into one that supports higher studies for women.

One of the rising sons in the DMK is Karthik Dhandapani.

A candidate from Chengalpattu, Karthik took over the Guduvancheri-Nandivaram municipality from his father and DMK stalwart M.K. Dhandapani, who died during the pandemic. Karthik was in the news earlier this year for taking 300 women sanitation workers for a junket to theme parks on the beaches south of Chennai on Republic Day.

“They (the women workers) are the backbone of the municipality, and every six months I keep trying to do something new for them, like organising community feasts and presenting awards for best workers. It is in line with what our chief minister has done with welfare schemes directed at women,” he told The Telegraph.

Karthik was a whole-timer in the party’s student and youth wings before the pandemic claimed both his parents.

“This is a party that doesn’t forget its cadre. When my mother was ill, I ran from hospital to hospital for an oxygen cylinder. I couldn’t even get a bed for her anywhere. When I had lost all hope, I got a call from Udhayanidhi Stalin. He said, ‘don’t worry, I will get oxygen’. I will never forget this,” Karthik told a TV channel.

Rivals have constantly targeted the DMK and the Congress over dynasty politics.

Union minister Piyush Goyal told reporters in Udhagamandalam here on Saturday: “If young men and women want a government job in Tamil Nadu today, they have to pay bribes. This is unacceptable to the people, and they will never accept someone who is anti-Tamil culture, anti-Tamil women, and promotes bribery. We do not accept Udhayanidhi Stalin as the future CM candidate of the DMK.”

The DMK young guns also face a challenge from actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam for youth votes.

However, Karthik expects his hard work to pay off.

“I had to work very hard for the last four-and-a-half years to win the trust of the people. A public representative can’t work merely through the mobile phone. Only if you live and work among people can you be their representative, unlike Vijay, whose presence in people’s lives is only on Instagram and Facebook,” he told this paper.

Women workers of the municipality that this reporter spoke to expressed satisfaction with the women-centric welfare measures, but said their connection with Karthik went deeper.

“We leave home very early in the morning and could not eat until noon. Thambi (younger brother Karthik) started serving breakfast with eggs for all workers at 8am. Even after night duty, he will come around on his scooter and drop us home if we request him,” S. Shanti, a sanitation worker, said.

Her colleague S. Nagavalli said: “ Karthik’s father was also like this. As long as a politician works for the people, I don’t think it is right to attack them for dynastic politics. We like Karthik because he is there when you need him, and not simply because we knew his father.”

The DMK has several all-women door-to-door campaign teams, a shift from the time when women usually stood with flags behind men during home visits.

But women are asking for more than doles. “Even my children had not gone to a theme park. I can’t forget that experience. It was so much fun.... I feel that the government should now work towards giving all workers a permanent home,” T. Bhagyalakshmi, a sanitation worker, said.

(Left to right) DMK Chengalpattu candidate Karthik Dhandapani with TN deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin at a roadshow in Chengalpattu constituency on April 13. Photo courtesy: DMK

The Kalaignarin Kanavu Illam scheme funds home construction for low-income families that own their homestead land. Land is now unaffordable for most people near cities such as Chennai.

Udaya Karunakaran, the 37-year-old DMK chairperson of the Kattankulathur Panchayat Union (equivalent to Panchayat Samitis in Bengal) in Chengalpattu, has a list of development projects on her fingertips. Yet, the most pressing demand of her constituents is land.

“This is really difficult as we are surrounded by forest land. We have to find a solution as people yearn for their own home... Our government has greatly improved public health services, especially for pregnant women. I feel that financial support for women even after delivery is important, as often both mothers and babies develop serious health problems post delivery,” she told this paper.

Currently, pregnant women get ₹18,000 and food supplements under the Dr Muthulakshmi Reddy Maternity Benefit Scheme.

Welfare schemes for urban areas try to temper the perception of poor law enforcement.

In Udhayanidhi’s seat of Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni, “law and order” is the first thing on people’s lips when asked what’s lacking.

At the Shree Hot Chill Biscuit Stall, a popular night hangout near the Ice House Police Quarters, youngsters point out the streets that are a no-go because of drug peddlers.

“Cops are never there when the drug peddlers appear. The DMK won’t talk about the issue, and other parties don’t spell out how they will end this menace. Maybe there is no solution. But it’s scary for delivery boys at night. Of what use is an MLA if he can’t solve this issue even after being the chief minister’s son?” Balachandran, a technician, told this paper.

• Tamil Nadu votes on April 23