Kongunadu Munnetra Kazhagam | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Best .S.Ramasamy Gounder |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Headquarters | Coimbatore,Tamil Nadu |
| Ideology | Indigenism Social conservatism |
| Political position | Centre-right |
| ECI Status | registered Unrecognised Party |
| Alliance | DPA (2011,2014-2019) BJP+ (2011) AIADMK+ (2019-present) |
| Party flag | |
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| Website | |
| https://www.kongunadumunnetrakazhagam.com/ | |
Kongunadu Munnetra Kazhagam (KMK) is a caste based political party representing theKongu Vellala Gounders, abackward caste in theIndian state ofTamil Nadu. The party's vote base is mainly concentrated in theKongu Nadu region of Tamil Nadu.[1]
The party launched in the name of "Kongunadu Munnetra Peravai" but later its leaders adopted the already registered name of "Kongunadu Munnetra Kazhagam". It was launched in 2009 atCoimbatore by the Kongu Vellala Goundergal Peravai, aGoundercaste organisation.[2] Although the party was launched by a Gounder organisation,[3] the party's founder Best Ramasamy dismissed that the party was only for the cause of Kongu Velala Gounders and said that his party will work for the cause of western Tamil Nadu.[4] The party also claims that it will work for development of theKongu region.[5]
The party contested in 12 constituencies independently (without alliance) in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and polled around 6 lakhs (600,000) votes in the Kongu region.[6] Although the party was not able to win any seat still it was considered as a good show by political observers as the party was started only 4 months before the elections. The party mainly contributed for the defeat of allCongress -Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) alliance candidates in the Kongu region of Tamil Nadu.[7] The party came third in many constituencies ahead ofVijayakanth'sDesiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam.[6]
In the 2011 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, KMK joined hands with DMK and contested 7 seats. It lost in all the 7 seats and inlocal body elections, the party allied with theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP).[8]
| Year | Election | Votes polled | Seats contested | Seats won | Alliance with |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 2009 Indian general election | 5,79,704 | 12 | 0 | -- |
| 2011 | 2011 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election | 3,70,044 | 7 | 0 | United Progressive Alliance |