Disappointed over confusion post bifurcation, electors say with little development and strained civic infrastructure, Tirukkoyilur is totally neglected

The largely agrarian Tirukkoyilur Assembly Constituency in Villupuram district is witnessing a generational shift in the upcoming Assembly elections on April 23. The sitting MLA and party strongman in north Tamil Nadu K. Ponmudi has been denied seat for the elections.

Mr. Ponmudy has been replaced by his first son and former MP Gowtham Sigamani, as the candidate of the ruling DMK. He is facing a fight from S. Palanisamy of the AIADMK and Hemarajan, an advocate of the Naam Tamilar Katchi. The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam is also in the fray.

Though the DMK has taken up an extensive outreach campaign in the constituency in the last few days, there seems to be a discernible anti-incumbency mood against Mr. Ponmudi, given he has been the MLA for two terms now.

In April 2025, Mr. Ponmudy ran into trouble after the Madras High Court directed its Registry to take up a suo motu writ petition with respect to a derogatory speech made by him against Saivites, Vaishnavites, and women. He resigned on April 27, 2025. It is perhaps after sensing the anti-incumbency factor against Mr. Ponmudi that the DMK refused to allocate the seat to him, DMK partymen said.

After the delimitation exercise in 2008, Tirukkoyilur has seen three elections from 2011. The DMK has won it two times while the DMDK won it once. For now, Mr. Gowtham Sigamani treads a tricky path of battling anti-incumbency while the AIADMK hopes to cash in on it.

Cup of woes overflows

For the residents of the constituency, the cup of woes has been overflowing. The foremost among them is the wounds caused by the bifurcation of Kallakurichi district that was hived off Villupuram district in 2019. The manner in which the bifurcation was done has left behind a deep sense of disappointment and a trail of bitter memories.

According to M. Ravichandran, a senior citizen, “Tirukkoyilur is endowed with rich cultural and historical significance, including the famed Kabilar Kundru. The constituency is a major agricultural hub and is well connected by road and rail networks. Though Tirukkoyilur was the second major administrative headquarters, next only to Cuddalore in the erstwhile South Arcot district, it has been totally neglected now.”

He added, “The bifurcation which was done in a haphazard manner has given rise to a piquant situation. The revenue district of Tirukkoyilur is in Kallakurichi district while the Assembly constituency is in Villupuram district. Tirukkoyilur should have been the District Headquarters. Though the bifurcation was carried out during the previous AIADMK regime, the people wanted the revenue district to be merged with Villupuram. There is a disgruntlement among voters that no steps were taken during Mr. Ponmudy’s tenure to address the issue,” he said.

The constituency has also been facing a number of civic and infrastructure issues. The civic body is yet to a establish a robust underground drainage system while rampant encroachments on waterbodies, including an underground canal from the Sandaipettai lake to two temple ponds in the town has strained the civic infrastructure.

Over the years, the traffic congestion has also increased in the town. T. Mudhukundran, a long-time resident of Tirukkoyilur, said while neighbouring Sankarapuram Assembly constituency in Kallakurichi district, also represented by the DMK had seen good development, Tirukkoyilur has been completely neglected.

“Though Mr. Ponmudy served as the Minister for Higher Education, the constituency was sanctioned a Government Arts and Science College quite late. The college should have come up 25 years ago. Similarly, the demand for establishment of a Government Girls Higher Secondary School at Arakandanallur has been pending for over 10 years. Though land has been identified for the school, no steps have been taken so far,” he said.

Though land has been identified for the construction of a bus stand in Tirukkoyilur town, the residents and civil society organisations are up in arms against the move and have demanded that the bus stand be shifted to the outskirts of the town.