Chennai: In southern Tamil Nadu, where caste and politics mix like salt and water, this year’s Thevar Guru Pooja at Pasumpon wasn’t just about reverence, it was a show of power. With both Dravidian majors invoking Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar’s legacy, the annual ritual has come to be known as a litmus test of who can command the southern vote bank that may very well decide the outcome of the assembly elections next year.

With major players rallying to Pasumpon every year, political analysts see it as a desperate attempt to woo the Mukkulathor (an umbrella term used to refer to Kallars, Maravars and Agamudaiyar) voters. “The South has stopped being a guarantee for any party. After the death of former chief minister J. Jayalalithaa and the subsequent divisions in the party unit, the sou

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