AIADMK factions patch up, withdraw MLAs disqualification plea
Rebel MLAs led by former state minister SP Velumani visited party chief Palaniswami at his residence on Greenways Road and expressed their support for the AIADMK general secretary, a party source said. However, C And Shanmugam’s absence was noticeable but Velumani claimed that he was with them.
Soon after visiting Palaniswami, Velumani met Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar.
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Speaking to reporters, Velumani, the party’s Coimbatore strongman, denied creating a split in the AIADMK. He also rejected the accusation by Palaniswami supporters that his group had voted in favor of the TVK government in the May 13 floor test in a bid to get high positions in the government.
Earlier, Velumani was accompanied by around 13 legislators, including senior leader KC Veeramani. Conspicuous by his absence, Shanmugam, along with Velumani and other legislators, had demanded that the party support the TVK government.
However, Velumani said that Shanmugam was also with them. “We came from Shanmugam’s office (before meeting Palaniswami). So we are all together,” he said. Soon after meeting AIADMK chief Velumani, former minister Dr. C Vijayabaskar, accompanied by legislators supporting him and senior leaders including Agri SS Krishnamurthy from the Palaniswami camp, called Speaker Prabhakar and submitted a letter stating that they will serve as a single party in the Assembly.
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Vijayabaskar withdrew his earlier letter requesting the Speaker to recognize him as the party whip.
The Speaker said he will announce his decision on the letter submitted by AIADMK members on Thursday.
“There is no split in the AIADMK as portrayed in the media. There was only difference of opinion and this has been rectified,” Velumani told reporters after meeting the Speaker. he said. He said that after the defeat in the April 23 Assembly elections, he and others tried to organize a meeting to review the party’s performance and analyze the reasons for the defeat. Some of them also took a stand in the Parliament to support the TVK government.
“Agri SS Krishnamurthy and others (MLAs) who petitioned the Speaker today and 22 MLAs (from the rebel camp) who filed a similar petition seeking to disqualify legislators (on both sides) under the anti-defection law have withdrawn both our petitions,” Velumani, who was once considered a close aide of Palaniswami, said. he added.
He also said that Palaniswami had agreed to consider their demand to constitute a committee to review the performance and investigate the reasons for the defeat in a phased manner.
“On the call of our General Secretary, we are in AIADMK which will function as a united and strong force,” he said.
During this period, four AIADMK MLAs resigned and joined the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) led by Chief Minister C JosephVijay.
Later, the party’s strength in the 234-member Parliament dropped from 47 to 43.
