TVK Ministers slam DMK chief Stalin over alleged body-shaming of Dharapuram bypoll candidate

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Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin made these remarks during a campaign for DMK candidate S. Suganya in the Dharapuram (SC) constituency on October 2, 2026. | Photo Credit: S. Siva Saravanan

Several Ministers in the TVK-led government have condemned DMK president M.K. Stalin for his alleged body-shaming remarks about TVK’s candidate for the Dharapuram bypoll, P. Sathyabama, and have demanded a public apology from him.

During a Dharapuram campaign in Tiruppur on Friday (October 2, 2026), Mr. Stalin criticised Ms. Sathyabama for switching from AIADMK to TVK, asking “how did she manage to do somersaults with her body?” The remark drew widespread criticism from TVK leaders, who accused him of body-shaming.

Health Minister K.G. Arunraj said Mr. Stalin insulted women, especially from Scheduled Castes, with his body-shaming remarks. He called Mr. Stalin’s comments against political decorum and demanded a public apology.

Minister for Energy Resources and Law C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar claimed that DMK leaders had made it their practice to repeatedly make derogatory remarks about women. He said Mr. Stalin’s alleged body-shaming remarks were the height of frustration and were strongly condemnable.

“This is the true face of the DMK, which delivers long speeches on feminism and the revolutionary ideas of its ideological leaders. The people have clearly understood this, and the DMK will no longer receive public support,” Mr. Kumar added.

“Is making derogatory remarks about women what the DMK’s politics is all about?” asked Minister for School Education Rajmohan. “Insulting remarks about women do not affect only individuals; they demean the self-respect and dignity of women as a whole. If you think that insulting women on the political stage will earn applause, that is not a victory in politics but a decline in political culture.”

Minister for Industries S. Keerthana said it was truly disheartening to hear such remarks from someone who had held the highest office in the State. “When the guardian of the party himself makes such statements, what can we expect from the rest of the DMK leadership? Repeatedly making derogatory remarks about women in public forums and attempting to demean their dignity is absolutely condemnable,” she said.

Ministers T.K. Prabhu, Vanni Arasu, M. Vijay Balaji, R. Vinoth, and D. Logesh Tamilselvan condemned Mr. Stalin for alleged body-shaming of Ms. Sathyabama. BJP leader Vanathi Srinivasan also condemned Mr. Stalin, saying the DMK has learnt no lesson from recent defeats.

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