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Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam · MLA Saidapet · AC 23

Arul Prakasam . M

M. Arul Prakasam won Saidapet (AC 23) in the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly election as the TVK candidate, polling 81,205 votes and defeating DMK's M. Subramanian — the outgoing Tamil Nadu Health Minister — by a margin of 28,514. A 44-year-old Chennai builder who runs Tejas Builders and serves as managing trustee of Sri Arangar Arutkudil, Arul Prakasam is one of the most-watched TVK first-timers, having unseated a sitting cabinet minister in a Chennai heartland constituency.

Arul Prakasam . M
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam

Arul Prakasam . M

TVKMLA · Saidapet
Born
Around 1982 (44 yrs as per 2026 ECI affidavit); son of P. S. Mani; voter enrolment in Sholinganallur, Chennai
Constituency
Saidapet · AC 23
District
Chennai
Party
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam
Profession
Builder — Managing Director, Tejas Builders; Managing Trustee, Sri Arangar Arutkudil; first-time MLA, Saidapet (TVK)
2026 result
won by 28,514 votes
Education
SSLC From St. Joseph Higher Secondary School, Tirupapuliyur, Year of Completed In 1996.

At a glance

2026 votes
81,205
in the assembly election
Margin
28,514
votes ahead of runner-up
Constituency
Saidapet
AC 23 · Chennai
Party
TVK
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam
Field size
16
candidates contested
Age
44 yrs
as of 2026
Declared assets
₹1.68 cr
ECI affidavit, 2026
Criminal cases
0 pending
declared in affidavit

Education

Highest qualification10th Pass

ECI affidavit (2026)

0 pending criminal cases declared in the 2026 ECI affidavit. Total declared assets: ₹1.68 cr.

ItemValue
Total declared assets₹1.68 cr
Liabilities₹18.58 L
Source: Election Commission of India affidavit, March 2026 — collated by myneta.info (view live page).

Career timeline

The 2026 win — Saidapet

Arul Prakasam . M polled 81,205 votes, defeating Subramanian . Ma (DMK) by a margin of 28,514.

#CandidatePartyVotes
1Arul Prakasam . MTVK81,205
2Subramanian . MaDMK52,691
3Senthamizhan . GAMMK17,839
4Srividya . GNTK5,918
5NotaNOTA924

→ Full Saidapet (AC 23) seat page · district: Chennai

Family

Married. Father's name P. S. Mani per the 2026 ECI affidavit; spouse listed as a fellow trustee of Sri Arangar Arutkudil. Voter enrolment in Sholinganallur, Chennai.

Party & ideology

Arul Prakasam is the TVK 'self-made entrepreneur' archetype — first-generation business, modest formal education, drafted to anchor a Dravidian-stronghold Chennai seat. His Saidapet platform centres on the long-running pattas (land-title) delivery problem in older tenement and slum-clearance neighbourhoods, civic infrastructure for the dense central-Chennai wards, and the TVK manifesto's urban-services chapter — a pitch that visibly resonated against the DMK incumbent's twelve-year hold on the seat.

Notable statements

The issuance of land titles (pattas) will be the first focus if elected to power in the Saidapet Assembly Constituency.— M. Arul Prakasam · interview to The Hindu, April 2026

FAQ

Who is M. Arul Prakasam?

M. Arul Prakasam (44) is the new TVK MLA for Saidapet (AC 23) in Chennai. A first-generation Chennai builder, he runs Tejas Builders and serves as managing trustee of Sri Arangar Arutkudil. He won his debut Assembly election with 81,205 votes — defeating DMK's M. Subramanian, the outgoing Health Minister, by 28,514 votes.

Did he really beat the Health Minister?

Yes. Ma. Subramanian had been the DMK Health Minister in M. K. Stalin's 2021-26 cabinet and was the sitting MLA for Saidapet. The 2026 result: Arul Prakasam (TVK) 81,205, Subramanian (DMK) 52,691 — a 28,514-vote margin in a 16-candidate field. It was among the more striking incumbency upsets of the 2026 cycle in Chennai.

What does his 2026 affidavit show?

Total assets of around Rs 1.67 crore against Rs 18.57 lakh in liabilities (three ICICI Bank loans). No criminal cases. Annual income of Rs 9.99 lakh in 2024-25. Education up to SSLC (1996). Profession: builder and trustee.

Sources