Chennai: The DMK is witnessing internal ripples after claims emerged that a three-member group allegedly submitted near-identical reports to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin for five years, masking ground-level sentiment and law-and-order feedback.
According to party sources quoted in the report, information on the impact of government schemes, voter mood and related inputs were collected through the intelligence wing and also via an election strategy firm run by Stalin’s son-in-law, Sabareesan. These updates were periodically presented to the Chief Minister.
The sources allege that a senior official from the strategy firm, an intelligence officer and one of the Chief Minister’s assistants formed a ‘syndicate’ and repeatedly provided optimistic assessments—claiming the party’s influence was rising across sections including women, and that ministers and MLAs were performing well.
The same sources further claim that internal dissatisfaction within the party against ministers and MLAs was concealed, while recommendations were made to re-allocate tickets to the same set of candidates. The report also alleges that large sums were collected from those who received tickets through the strategy firm.
Following the party’s electoral defeat, Durga is said to have initiated an inquiry through a team, during which these details surfaced. The report adds that more than 200 staff members linked to the strategy firm were removed, allegedly as part of efforts to deflect the issue, and that Stalin and Sabareesan have begun to realise they were misled.
