Chennai: The AIADMK has been hit by fresh internal turbulence after the party was pushed to third place in the Madurantakam and Dharapuram by-elections. The setback has intensified criticism of general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS), with a disgruntled camp stepping up efforts to consolidate support against him.
The report notes that since J Jayalalithaa’s death, the party has not secured a complete electoral victory, and the latest bypoll outcome has reopened old fault lines. Differences over political alignments and strategy have earlier led to a split between the EPS camp and a dissident group.
The dissident camp is said to be led by former ministers S P Velumani and C V Shanmugam. Following the bypoll results, they held consultations at Velumani’s residence in Chennai’s MRC Nagar, with former ministers including Thangamani and Viswanathan also taking part. EPS, meanwhile, is reported to be speaking to party functionaries and MLAs to shore up his side.
Dissident leaders argue that the party’s vote base has weakened sharply, citing Dharapuram as an example where they claim support fell from about 40% to 25%. They also contend that without PMK support in the northern districts, the AIADMK’s prospects are bleak, and blame EPS for failing to unite cadres and secure alliances even during the bypolls.
With removing EPS from the general secretary post seen as difficult, the dissident camp is reportedly focusing on numbers in the Assembly. The report claims 26 of the AIADMK’s 41 MLAs have joined the anti-EPS side, and efforts are under way to bring MLAs to Chennai and obtain support letters to strengthen their claim within the legislature.
