M.K. Stalin (Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu) criticized Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for implying that the Madurai Metro Rail project would be sanctioned only if the BJP candidate won the Madurai South Assembly constituency election. Stalin labeled this as 'blackmail' and questioned the appropriateness of such comments from a constitutional authority. He emphasized the DMK's proactive stance on issues like constituency delimitation, which could disadvantage southern states in parliamentary representation. Stalin claimed that his government had been vocal about these concerns while alleging that the AIADMK leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami would have compromised Tamil Nadu's interests if he were in power. Furthermore, Stalin accused the central government of failing to allocate adequate resources to Tamil Nadu, despite the state contributing significantly to national taxes. He also warned voters in Cuddalore that if the AIADMK-led NDA came to power, beneficial schemes like the Vidiyal Payanam (free bus travel for women) could be at risk, linking this to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's previous criticisms of such initiatives. Stalin asserted that the DMK had improved the state's growth rate from 0.07% to 11.19% and urged voters to support the party to continue this progress.