MLA · 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly (2026–31)Former MLA · 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly (2026–31)

Anitha R. Radhakrishnan
  • Won 2026 by 5,872

Anitha R. Radhakrishnan

அனிதா ஆர். ராதாகிருஷ்ணன்

MLA for Tiruchendur since May 2026MLA for Tiruchendur, 2026–31DMK

  • AC 215 · Thoothukudi district
  • Sitting MLA · 17th Assembly (2026–31)
  • Born 19 September 1951
declared assets
₹8.64 cr
pending criminal cases
3
education
10th pass
times elected MLA
7

Assets, cases and education as declared in the 2026 sworn affidavit to the Election Commission of India. The cases are pending, not convictions.

How did my village vote?Tiruchendur seat page

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Career

Anitha R. Radhakrishnan: the career, year by year

  1. 2001
  2. 2006
  3. 2009
  4. 2011
  5. 2016
  6. 2021
  7. 2026

Elected from Tiruchendur 7 times

  • Assembly win
  • Office held
  • Party
  1. Early career

    Joins the AIADMK; rises through the Tiruchendur party structure in the Thoothukudi coastal belt.

  2. 2001

    First MLA win from Tiruchendur on the AIADMK ticket with 54.30%, defeating DMK's S. Jennifer Chandran.

  3. Nov 2002 – May 2006

    Sworn in as Minister for Housing and Urban Development in the J. Jayalalithaa cabinet — handled TNHB / TNSCB programmes through her first full term.

  4. 2006

    Re-elected from Tiruchendur on the AIADMK ticket with 52.52%.

  5. 30 Jul 2009

    Expelled by the AIADMK for alleged anti-party activities. Joins the DMK the same year.

  6. 2009

    Wins the Tiruchendur by-election on the DMK ticket with 67.81% vote share — the bridge from AIADMK to DMK is sealed.

  7. 2011, 2016, 2021

    Re-elected from Tiruchendur on the DMK ticket in three successive elections.

  8. May 2015

    Briefly suspended by the DMK after greeting AIADMK leader J. Jayalalithaa following her acquittal in the disproportionate-assets case. Reinstated soon after.

  9. 7 May 2021

    Sworn in as Minister for Fisheries, Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry in the first M. K. Stalin cabinet — handled the Tamil Nadu fisheries policy, the Sri Lanka-fishermen issue, the Pamban-Rameswaram fishing cluster and the state's animal husbandry and dairy programmes.

  10. Feb 2022

    Enforcement Directorate provisionally attaches assets of about Rs 6.5 crore guidance value — 18 immovable properties, 160 acres of land — under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, in connection with a 2006 DVAC case alleging assets disproportionate to known income for 2001-2006. Radhakrishnan denies wrongdoing; the case continues at the trial stage.

  11. Mar 2025

    Police register a case against him after BJP complaints over remarks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

  12. 4 May 2026

    Won Tiruchendur for the DMK (polling was on 23 April).

    See the full 2026 result
  13. 11 May 2026

    Continues as DMK MLA in the 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly — seventh Tiruchendur win across two parties and four decades.

Profile

About Anitha R. Radhakrishnan

This is his seventh Assembly win from Tiruchendur — twice on the AIADMK ticket (2001, 2006), then four times on the DMK ticket (2009 by-election, 2011, 2016, 2021) and again in 2026. He served as Tamil Nadu's Minister for Fisheries, Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry through the 2021-26 term, and was earlier the state's Minister for Housing and Urban Development (November 2002 – May 2006) under J. Jayalalithaa.

Party
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
Born
19 September 1951 in Thandupathu, Udangudi, Thoothukudi district
Profession
Politician (1990s– ); long-rooted in the Tiruchendur fishermen-and-coastal politics of Thoothukudi district
District
Thoothukudi

Education

  • SchoolingSchooling in Thoothukudi district

Party & ideology

Radhakrishnan is one of the small group of senior Tamil Nadu legislators who built a long career inside the AIADMK and switched to the DMK mid-stream — winning Tiruchendur both times. His ministerial record spans both the Jayalalithaa and Stalin cabinets, and his Fisheries portfolio in 2021-26 made him the cabinet face of the Tamil Nadu fishermen-Sri Lanka issue and of the state's coastal-economy policy.

Family

From Thandupathu, Udangudi, Thoothukudi district. Wider family details kept private per ECI affidavit.

Questions people ask

How many times has Anitha R. Radhakrishnan won?

Seven — Tiruchendur in 2001 and 2006 (AIADMK), then 2009 by-election, 2011, 2016, 2021 and 2026 (DMK). He has held two ministerial portfolios across two parties — Housing and Urban Development under Jayalalithaa (2002-06) and Fisheries, Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry under M. K. Stalin (2021-26).

Why did he switch from AIADMK to DMK?

He was expelled by the AIADMK on 30 July 2009 for alleged anti-party activities. He joined the DMK the same year and won the subsequent Tiruchendur by-election in 2009 on the DMK ticket with 67.81% — and has stayed with the party since.

What is the ED money-laundering case about?

The case originates in a 2006 disproportionate-assets complaint filed by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) covering the period 14 May 2001 – 31 March 2006. In February 2022 the Enforcement Directorate provisionally attached assets of about Rs 6.5 crore guidance value — 18 immovable properties and 160 acres of land — under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. Radhakrishnan denies wrongdoing; the case is at the trial stage.

What did he do as Fisheries Minister?

From May 2021 to May 2026 he handled Tamil Nadu's Fisheries, Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry portfolios — including the diplomatic and welfare response on Sri Lankan-Navy detentions of TN fishermen, the Pamban-Rameswaram fishing cluster, the Wadge Bank issue, the Coastal Aquaculture and shrimp-export policy, and the state's animal husbandry and dairy programmes.

Other MLAs from Thoothukudi district

G. V. MarkandayanVilathikulam · DMKSrinathThoothukkudi · TVKG. SaravananSrivaikuntam · TVKP. MathanrajaOttapidaram · TVKK. KarunanithiKovilpatti · DMK

Page last changed 2 October 2026.

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