The Pattali Makkal Katchi (; PMK) is a political party in Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded by Dr. S. Ramadoss in 1989 to provide political representation for the Vanniyar caste, a community found throughout northern Tamil Nadu. It is a part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Its symbol is a mango. As of 2025, it is currently led by Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss following a months long dispute that resulted in his father, Dr. S. Ramadoss, forming a splinter faction of the PMK, which ended in 2026 after both reuniting.
History Vanniyar Sangam S. Ramadoss founded the in 1980, bringing together a coalition of Vanniyar caste organisations. The Vanniyar Sangam is PMK's parent organisation that organised the 1987 Vanniyar reservation agitation, demanding Most Backward Caste (MBC) status for Vanniyars. At the peak of the protests, the state was paralysed for a week when thousands of trees were cut down, highways were blocked and damaged, and more than 1,400 houses belonging to members of the Dalit community were torched. The police shot 21 protestors. Later, in 1989, the DMK government led by then-Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi granted MBC status to the Vanniyars, with the associated reservation entitlements in education and employment.
PMK (1989–present) Ramadoss founded the PMK on 16 July 1989, emerging from the Vanniyar reservation protests of 1987.
Ahead of the 2004 elections, PMK joined the Democratic Progressive Alliance, a broad Tamil political coalition which also included the DMK, Indian National Congress (INC), Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Indian Union Muslim League. The party was able to obtain a significant share of power both in the regional government in Tamil Nadu and the Central Government due to the number of seats it won which helped the United Progressive Alliance (UPA-I) form the Government.
Following the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, the PMK joined the United Progressive Alliance led by the INC. In June 2008, during the final months of the bitter relationship between the DMK and the PMK, the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu severed its ties with the PMK, who were outside supporters of the Karunanidhi Government. However, the DMK did not press for the party's removal from the UPA Government at the centre. On 26 March 2009, PMK declared that, it would join the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) led front and left the United Progressive Alliance (UPA).
Ramadoss and his son, Anbumani Ramdoss, were arrested by the Jayalalithaa government for their inflammatory speeches, the PMK cadres indulged in violence in April 2013 causing property damages estimated worth ₹600 crores. Jayalalithaa likened the party to a “terrorist” organization and claimed they hurled petrol bombs on moving vehicles and caused damages to 850 vehicles including public buses and threatened to ban the party. Ramadoss and his son were released after 12 days in prison.
PMK contested in the 2014 Lok Sabha election in an alliance with BJP-led NDA and its candidate Anbumani Ramadoss won the Dharmapuri Lok Sabha constituency, he was one of two non-AIADMK MPs from Tamil Nadu the other being from its ally BJP.
PMK continued its alliance with AIADMK and BJP in the 2019 Indian general election in Tamil Nadu and contested 7 seats but the party failed to win any seats.
PMK again contested seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, fielding 10 candidates across 10 separate constituencies. But the party failed to win any seats.
The Madras Institute of Developmental Studies (MIDS) and an reported that the PMK and the Hindu Munnani was involved in the 2019 Ponparappi violence where Dalit women were sexually abused and Dalit houses were attacked and damaged. An NGO Evidence also blamed PMK in the violence because the Dalit colony voted overwhelmingly for VCK.
In November 2020, Ramadoss called for a protest demanding 20% internal reservation for Vanniyars in the MBC category in education and jobs from 1 December. During the pro-reservation protests, more than 500 PMK cadres pelted stones on a moving train and blocked traffic when they were blocked from entering Chennai. A bill to create the 10.5% internal reservation to Vanniyars was passed on February 26, 2021, by the AIADMK government. The move was taken ahead of the April 6 assembly elections to appease the PMK, which had threatened to quit the coalition if their demand was not satisfied. In July 2021, the DMK government issued an order to implement 10.5% quota Bill for Vanniyars.
PMK contested in 23 seats in the AIADMK alliance in the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election and won five seats by securing 4.04%. In the assembly, PMK voted in favour of anti-CAA and anti-farm-law resolutions, but AIADMK and BJP walked out over the matter. PMK left the AIADMK-led alliance for the 2021 local body polls.
Ideology and political positions The PMK defied Tamil Nadu's Dravidian political culture by explicitly appealing to its caste identification when asking for support. The party has been linked to direct action and protests that have resulted in violence. Between 2012 and 2013, the party ran a campaign against intercaste marriages.
Current office bearers and prominent members The leaders of Pattali Makkal Katchi, who are also the national executives of the party, are listed below:
National Executive S.No Member Party Position1.S. RamadossFounder of PMK2.Anbumani Ramadoss President of PMK3.Vadivel RavananGeneral Secretary of PMK4.M. ThilagabamaTreasurer of PMK
List of party leaders Party Presidents
No.PortraitNameTerm in officeAssumed officeLeft officeTime in office1Dheeran(unknown)16 July 198931 December 19972G.K. Mani(1952–)31 December 199728 May 20223Anbumani Ramadoss(1968–)28 May 2022Incumbent
Party Honanary Presidents No.PortraitNameTerm in officeAssumed officeLeft officeTime in office1G.K. Mani(1952–)28 May 202226 December 2025
List of Union Ministers PortraitMinisterTerm of officePortfolio MinistryPrime Minister From To Period1Dalit Ezhilmalai[]20 March199814 August1999Minister of Health and Family Welfare Vajpayee II Atal Bihari Vajpayee2N. T. Shanmugam[]13 October199927 May2000 Vajpayee III27 May 2000 7 February2001Ministry of Coal1 July200215 January2004Ministry of Food Processing Industries3A. K. Moorthy1 July200215 January2004 in Ministry of Railways 4 E. Ponnuswamy 13 October1999 7 February2001 in Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas5Anbumani Ramadoss23 May200429 March2009Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Manmohan I Manmohan Singh6R. Velu in Ministry of Railways
Election history Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Election YearAssembly Seats contested Seats won Overall votes (%) of votes (+/-) in seats Vote swingOutcomeTamil Nadu Legislative Assembly199110th19414,52,9825.89% 1 new199611th11614,52,9823.84% 3 2.05200112th2715,57,5005.56% 16 1.72200613th3118,63,7495.65% 2 0.09201114th3019,27,7835.23% 15 0.42201615th23223,00,5585.32% 3 0.06202116th2317,58,7743.80% 5 1.52202617th1810,70,7452.17% 1 1.63
Lok Sabha (Tamil Nadu) YearLok SabhaSeats contestedSeats won(+/-) in seats% of votesVote swingPopular voteAllianceOutcome19899th325.82%15,36,350PMK199110th315.14% 0.6812,69,690PMK199611th152.03% 3.115,52,118PMK+199812th5 46.05% 4.0215,48,976NDA199913th7 18.21% 2.1622,36,821NDA200414th56.71% 1.5019,27,367UPA200915th6 55.71% 1.0017,36,000UNPA201416th8 14.51% 1.2018,04,812NDA201917th7 15.29% 0.7822,97,431NDA202418th104.33% 0.9618,79,689NDA
Puducherry Legislative Assembly YearAssemblySeats contestedSeats won(+/-) in seats% of votesVote swingPopular voteAllianceOutcome19908th246.38%26,820PMK19919th132.92% 3.4611,402PMK199610th5 12.51% 0.4111,544PMK200111th10 17.71% 5.2036,788ADMK+200612th2 23.80% 3.9121,507UPA201113th2 22.48% 1.3217,342UPA201614th240.71% 1.775,666PMK202115thDid Not Contest Election to support NDA202616th190.12% 0.591,057PMK
Puducherry Lok Sabha
YearLok SabhaSeats won(+/-) in seats% of votesVote swingPopular voteCandidateAllianceOutcome19899th6.63%25,021Bavany MaduracayyPMK199110th3.41% 3.2213,375199611th4.30% 0.8919,792199812thDid Not Contest to Support NDA candidate199913th31.73% 27.431,40,920M. RamadassNDA200414th 149.95% 18.822,41,653UPA200915th 134.32% 15.632,08,619UNPA201416th3.07% 31.2522,754R.K.R. AnantharamanNDA201917thDid Not Contest to Support NDA candidate202418thDid Not Contest to Support NDA candidate List of Elected Representatives Member of Legislative Assembly (Tamil Nadu) YearAssemblyConstituencyMLA NameRemarks199110thPanrutiS. Ramachandaran199611thPennagaramG. K. Mani1st TermEdapadiI. Ganesan1st TermTaramangalamP. GovindanAndimadamRajendiran200112thAcharapakkam (SC)A. SelvarajKapilamalaiA. R. MalaiyappasamyVridhachalamR. GovindasamyPennagaramG. K. Mani2nd TermTiruttaniG. RavirajEdapadiI. Ganesan2nd TermAndimadamJ. Gurunathan1st TermChengalpattuK. Arumugam1st TermVandavasi (SC)K. MurugavelrajanDharmapuriK. Pary MohanSalem-IIM. KartheTaramangalamM. P. KamarajSankarapuramP. KasampuCheyyarP. S. UlagarakshaganAndhiyur (SC)R. KrishnanNatrampalliS. NatarajanPoonamalleeS. ShanmugamPanrutiT. VelmuruganTiruppatturT. K. RajaDharapuram (SC)V. Sivakami200613thOmalurA. TamizharasuTirupporur (SC)D. MoorthyPeranamallurG. EdirolimanianMetturG. K. Mani3rd TermChengalpattuK. Arumugam2nd TermArcotK. L. ElavazhaganKapilamalaiK. NedunchezhianPoompuharK. PeriyasamyBhavaniK. V. RamanathanDharmapuriL. VelusamyKancheepuramP. KamalambalTaramangalamP. KannanMelmalayanurP. SenthamizhselvanKaveripattinamT. A. MeganathanTiruppatturT. K. RajaPanrutiT. Velmurugan2nd TermMugaiyurV. A. T. KaliyavarathanEdapadiV. Kaveri201114thGingeeA. Ganeshkumar1st TermJayankondamJ. Gurunathan2nd TermAnaikattuM. Kalai Arasu202116thSalem (West)Arul RamadasMailamC. Sivakumar1st TermPennagaramG. K. Mani4th TermDharmapuriS. P. VenkateshwaranMetturS. Sadhasivam202617thGingeeA. Ganeshkumar2nd TermVikravandiC. Sivakumar2nd TermJayankondamG. VaithilingamDharmapuriSowmiya Anbumani
Member of Legislative Assembly (Puducherry) Lok Sabha Members YearLok SabhaMemberConstituencyRemarks 1998 12th Dalit Ezhilmalai Chidambaram (SC) K. Parymohan Dharmapuri M. Durai Vandavasi N.T. Shanmugam Vellore 1999 13th A.K. Moorthy Chengalpattu E. Ponnuswamy Chidambaram (SC) P. D. Elangovan Dharmapuri M. Durai Vandavasi Re-elected for 2nd term N. T. Shanmugam Vellore Re-elected for 2nd term200414th R. Velu Arakkonam A. K. Moorthy Chengalpattu Re-elected for 2nd term E. Ponnuswamy Chidambaram (SC) Re-elected for 2nd term R. Senthil Dharmapuri K. Dhanaraju Tindivanam M. RamadassPuducherry 2014 16th Anbumani Ramadoss Dharmapuri
Rajya Sabha Member No.PortraitNameTerm in officeConstituencyAssumed officeLeft officeTime in office1Anbumani Ramadoss(1968–)30 April 200429 June 20106 yearsTamil Nadu(Rajya Sabha)25 July 201924 July 20256 years3 April 20262 April 20316 years
See also List of political parties in India
References