கழகத்திற்கு மக்களிடம் அதிகரித்த ஆதரவைப் பொறுக்க முடியாமல், பணப்பெட்டியையும் சிலர் சவப்பெட்டியையும் நம்பி தேர்தல் களத்தை சந்தித்தனர்.

DMK working president M.K. Stalin criticized competing AIADMK factions on April 11, 2017, for resorting to rampant money distribution and morbid theatricality during the R.K. Nagar by-election campaign. Stalin pointed out that unable to match the rising wave of popular support for the DMK, the ruling factions had degraded the democratic contest into a spectacle of cash bribery on one side and the parading of replica coffins on the other. He condemned these desperate maneuvers as an insult to voters.

Stalin stated that one faction attempted to purchase electoral loyalty by distributing vast sums of cash through secret distribution networks, while the rival camp sought to manipulate public sentiment through theatrical displays featuring deceased leaders. Neither group possessed any substantive policy vision, record of public service, or viable solutions to address the severe drinking water scarcity, sanitation problems, and economic distress confronting the residents of North Chennai. Their hollow tactics underscored their complete lack of political substance.

The opposition leader affirmed that the people of R.K. Nagar had clearly seen through these manipulative strategies. Stalin declared that the DMK's positive agenda of clean governance, civic development, and democratic dignity would inevitably triumph over illicit money power and emotional deception.