Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 | Congress pins hopes on church leader T T Praveen to fight off BJP, TVK in Vilavancode

Kanyakumari: Vilavancode assembly constituency in Kanyakumari district, which shares borders with Kerala, is witnessing Congress' multi-pronged , inter-state strategy as the party has fielded Church of South India (CSI) South Kerala diocese secretary T T Praveen as candidate for the upcoming elections.

Congress hopes to resist both the BJP as well as actor-turned politician Vijay's party Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Vilavancode by ensuring the support of the Nadar Christian community.

Moreover, the Nadar Christian community are key vote banks not just in various parts of Kanyakumari, but also in many constituencies of adjacent Thiruvananthapuram where the CPIM had made considerable inroads in the 2021 elections.

Praveen will be taking on three-time Congress MLA S Vijayadharni, who switched over to the BJP in 2024 after being denied Congress legislature party leader post.

The BJP is trying to campaign that Praveen is not a Tamilian, while Vijayadharani boast of the legacy of renowned Tamil poet Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai. BJP also cites a series of criminal cases as well as an Enforcement Directorate probe that Praveen faced.

TVK's entry into the electoral fray has also triggered concerns that the party might make inroads into Congress's vote banks. Hence Congress hopes that the CSI church secretary's candidacy could help in pleasing the Christian vote banks of adjacent constituencies in Kanyakumari too.

Praveen counters the criticisms. "The people will reject the campaigns that I am an outsider. We also do not see any threats like vote splits as TVK is very insignificant here," Praveen told DH during his campaign.

Vijayadharni, who wrested the seat from the CPM and presented a thumping victory for the Congress in 2011, 2016 and 2021 elections, claims that the good rapport that she established with the people of the constituency would help lotus bloom in the seat.

However, the resentment towards her was evident on the ground as some people harshly reacted about her for having switched over to the BJP.

Moreover, the 2024 assembly by-poll subsequent to Vijayadharni's resignation had witnessed Congress candidate Tharahai Cuthbert winning with a huge margin of over 40,000 votes against BJP's V S Nanthini.

Even as the Congress hopes to cash-in on Praveen's CSI church connection, the CSI church witnessed severe infights over the last few years which were triggered by alleged financial irregularities in church-run institutions which includes a medical college. Hence the rival camps anticipate that the Congress's strategy may not achieve the desired results.