AIADMK leader C V Shanmugam, who is part of the rebel group, asserted that the mandate is for Vijay's TVK, and, therefore, extended his support to the actor-politician's government on behalf of the AIADMK Legislative Party.
In a last-ditch bid to save his political future, former deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam (OPS), who has been left to fend for himself, has expressed his desire to join the AIADMK provided his ‘beloved brother’ and party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) and Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader TTV Dhinakaran, were prepared for readmitting him.
Welcoming the AMMK, led by TTV Dhinakaran, back into the NDA fold, Union Minister Piyush Goyal, election in-charge of Tamil Nadu, on Wednesday said the alliance partners have joined hands to remove the corrupt, incompetent and anti-Bharat DMK from power in the upcoming assembly poll.
Interestingly, he also asked ticket aspirants from Puducherry and Kerala to get the applications since the Union Territory and the neighbouring state as well are also having assembly elections early next year.
EPS also charged him with hobnobbing with those expelled from the party – Sasikala, TVV and OPS.
Ruling out the possibility of the AMMK’s return to the NDA, he reiterated that, so long as EPS is the Chief Ministerial candidate of the NDA, the question does not arise.
A day after EPS asked the party cadre to remain grateful to the BJP, warning that anything else would amount to “rank ingratitude,” Dhinakaran, nephew of Sasikala and leader of the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), told reporters in Thanjavur that all 122 AIADMK MLAs had voted for the government only on Sasikala’s advice, with no role played by the BJP.
BJP pushing party to accommodate TTV's AMMK
Palaniswami while addressing an election rally in Vellore, cited the example of 18 disqualified AIADMK rebel MLAs who sided with Dhinakaran earlier, to drive home his point on Dhinakaran’s betrayel of his cadres.
Dhinakaran, a former leader of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), launched his party on 15 March last year.
