Chennai, Nov 21 (IANS) The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), a prominent Dalit political party in Tamil Nadu, has announced a padayatra (foot march) from Kanyakumari’s Gandhi Mandapam to the Ambedkar statue in Nagercoil on December 6 to demand a Scheduled Caste (SC) reserved Assembly seat in Kanyakumari.

VCK Kanyakumari East District Secretary Gobi Perivalan told the media that the party has been consistently demanding the conversion of Kanyakumari into an SC-reserved Assembly constituency.

He emphasised the significance of such a move, citing the large Dalit population in the district.

According to Perivalan, Dalit representation in the state Assembly is crucial for addressing the issues faced by the community.

The Tamil Nadu Dalit Rights Movement will also conduct a march from Kanyakumari to Chennai on November 26 to further the demand.

Vin Dhinakaran, leader of the movement, stated that Kanyakumari district had two SC-reserved constituencies when it was part of the erstwhile Travancore state.

However, after the linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956, the Kanyakumari district was merged with Tamil Nadu, and the SC-reserved Assembly constituencies ceased to exist.

Dhinakaran urged authorities to create a new constituency by including the Thovalai and Agastheeswaram taluks.

Arokkiya Samy, Director of the Kanyakumari-based think tank Research and Study Centre, supported VCK’s demand, calling it a necessity while expressing hope that the party would exert enough pressure on the DMK government to take action.

CPI District Secretary T. Subhas Chandra Bose also backed the demand, highlighting the lack of representation for suppressed communities in the district.

He urged major political parties to field candidates from these communities in the Assembly constituencies.

Both the VCK and CPI are constituents of the INDIA Bloc in Tamil Nadu, led by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.

VCK, Tamil Nadu’s leading Dalit political party, currently holds two Lok Sabha seats and four MLA positions in the state Assembly.

Recently, VCK leader Aadhav Arjuna stirred controversy by demanding a ministerial berth for the party in Stalin’s Cabinet.

Both the DMK and AIADMK governments have historically excluded coalition partners from ministerial positions. However, the issue was reportedly resolved after VCK founder and leader Thol Thirumavalavan met with Chief Minister Stalin.