After TVK's victory in Tamil Nadu, SunTV's shares fell by about 10 percent.Image Credit source: Google Gemini
On Monday, shares of Sun TV Network were seen rising in the stock market. There was a decline of about 10 percent in the company's shares on Bombay Stock Exchange and fell to an intraday low of Rs 547.55. Initial trends were indicating that actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay's party 'Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam' (TVK) could pose a major challenge to the long-standing dominance of 'Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam' (DMK) and 'All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam' (AIADMK) in Tamil Nadu's electoral politics.
Sun TV is part of the Sun Group, which is controlled by media magnate Kananidhi Maran. Kananidhi Maran is the grandson of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and nephew of current Chief Minister MK Stalin. MK Stalin is also the current head of 'Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam' (DMK). Due to the fall in the shares of Sun TV, there has been a decline of about Rs 2300 crore in the company valuation in the trading session.
If we look at the data of Sun TV on Bombay Stock Exchange, at 12.45 pm the company's shares were trading at Rs 567.35 with a decline of 6.22 percent. However, the company's shares fell by about 10 percent during the trading session and reached Rs 547.55. Although the company's shares opened at Rs 612.85 with a rise compared to the last trading day of last week, but as the trends showed, TVK was moving ahead and DMK was lagging behind. However, a big decline was seen in the company's shares also.
On the other hand, if we talk about the valuation of the company, Sun TV has suffered huge losses. On the last trading day of last week, the valuation of the company was Rs 23,825.21 crore. As soon as the company's shares reached the day's low of Rs 547.55 on Monday, the company's valuation came down to Rs 21,562.8 crore. This means that there was a loss of about Rs 2,300 crore during the trading session. At 12:45 pm the valuation of the company is visible at Rs 22,230.31 crore.
According to Election Commission of India data, TVK is leading in 108 seats out of 234, followed by DMK in 56 seats. The alliance of BJP and AIADMK is ahead on 35 seats, followed by 'Pattali Makkal Katchi' (PMK) on 6 seats. Meanwhile, CPI (Communist Party of India) is leading on 2 assembly seats.
TVK is ahead in important seats like Tiruchi East and Perambur. This has also pushed AIADMK to third place in many seats. These trends point to a possible change from the state's traditional two-party political system.
For more than five decades, Tamil Nadu politics has been shaped by two Dravidian parties. DMK, founded in 1949 by C.N. Annadurai, and the AIADMK, founded in 1972 by M.G. Ramachandran had separated from DMK. Since 1967, every chief minister of the state has belonged to one of these two parties. Since the 1990s, no party has generally contested elections alone. Both parties have depended on alliances with national parties such as the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party, as well as regional parties such as the PMK, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and the Indian Union Muslim League. These regional parties garner support from specific groups of voters.
The composition of these alliances often plays an important role in deciding the outcome of elections. In 2021, the DMK-led alliance included INC, VCK, CPI and CPI(M), while the AIADMK-led alliance included BJP and PMK. TVK is very close to the majority figure of 118. It is possible that TVK may exceed this figure. If this happens, it can bring Vijay to the center of not only Tamil Nadu but also the central politics of the country.
