Madurai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 12 (ANI): All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) candidate for the Madurai North constituency, P Saravanan, expressed confidence that the party would secure a 'thumping majority' in the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, citing strong anti-incumbency sentiment against the ruling DMK.

Speaking to ANI on Saturday, P Saravanan said, 'There is a severe anti-incumbency against DMK and our party will win with a thumping majority. Our General Secretary will become the next CM of Tamil Nadu.'

Taking a swipe at Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay, Saravanan said, 'He is just a reel hero, the real hero is Edappadi Palaniswami.'

Meanwhile, the AIADMK has filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) accusing the DMK of illegally using the Tamil Nadu government's Information and Public Relations Department to run its election campaign.

In a letter addressed to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Chief Electoral Officer Archana Patnaik, AIADMK MP I S Inbadurai alleged that the Tamil Nadu government's Information and Public Relations Department is being used to promote the ruling party's campaign.

The complaint claimed that government equipment is being used to live-stream content on the 'DMK4TN' YouTube channel and that campaign-related material is being distributed through a private Gmail account.

It further alleged that a government press vehicle and officials, including Joint Director Prabhu Kumar and other staff, travelled with Chief Minister MK Stalin for collecting and broadcasting campaign material.

The AIADMK, in the complaint, listed several department heads and wings, such as the Tamil Nadu Film Division and the Social Media Wing, for being actively involved in partisan work and claims staff are being forced to perform these duties.

The complaint comes as Tamil Nadu is gearing up for its Assembly elections, scheduled to be conducted in a single phase on April 23, with counting scheduled for May 4.

The main contest is expected between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA), which includes the Indian National Congress, DMDK and VCK, and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by AIADMK with BJP and PMK as allies. Actor-turned-politician Vijay is also set to make his electoral debut with TVK, which could turn the contest into a three-way fight. (ANI)