Come 28, the by-election for Tiruvarur will take place. Though it was expected that by-polls would be held for 18 seats that saw rebel MLAs disqualified, the election to Tiruvarur alone was announced. The election was necessitated following the death of former Chief Minister and DMK leader M Karunanidhi, who won with a huge margin in last Assembly polls here. The filing of nominations began on January 3 and the last date to submit the papers will be January 10. Scrutiny will be done on January 11 and the last date for withdrawal of candidatures is January 14. Votes polled on January 28 will be counted on January 31.

It is a do or die battle for DMK President M K Stalin. A big victory here would mean a plenty to cheer for him. He would have a big say in forthcoming Lok sabha polls. Also it would put to rest the bad dreams of RK Nagar by-polls. Remember AMMK's TTV Dhinkaran stood as independent here and won the elections pushing DMK to third place. They even lost their deposit. Also the various factions within DMK would reunite if Stalin proves his strength. However the biggest threat has been Dhinakaran for the DMK. They fear what if he pulls out a truck or so like RK Nagar. 

A defeat here would mean loss of respect for stalin within his party. Also his brother M K Alagiri, who was removed from the party is eyeing for an opportunity to catch on the issue and make his impact felt. In a bid to win, that too with a huge margin, DMK will pull all its tricks. They feel that their candidate Kalaivanan is a strongman ion the area. He can hand over a victory with a huge margin.