AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Thursday said the bypoll for the Madurantakam Assembly constituency was “forced” because the MLA elected from the constituency earlier was “bought in horse trading”.

“You all know why this bypoll was necessitated? They [MLA] have been bought in horse trading. The bypoll in Madurantakam was forced,” Mr. Palaniswami said while campaigning for the AIADMK candidate for Madurantakam bypoll.

Mr. Palaniswami said that “on the advice” of TVK founder C. Joseph Vijay, the TVK functionaries had made the AIADMK MLA resign to “save their government”. She has since joined the TVK and has now been named as the TVK candidate for the bypoll, he said.

“It is a matter of shame. If you are man enough or have the courage, you should take it head-on,” Mr. Palaniswami said. He said the TVK candidate had earlier been given the chance to contest as an AIADMK candidate during the 2026 Assembly polls only to serve the people.

“The electorate in Madurantakam wanted the AIADMK to win, and so voted for its candidate in the previous Assembly polls and made her win,” Mr. Palaniswami recalled.

The AIADMK leader criticised the TVK candidate for “not having any sense of gratitude and for having disrespected the electorate of Madurantakam”.

She won in the Assembly election because of the hard work of the functionaries of the AIADMK and its allies, Mr. Palaniswami said.