AIADMK rebels’ troubled relationship with EPS

The resignation of AIADMK’s MLA from Karur MR Vijayabhaskar shows the fragile nature of the rebels’ truce with party general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami.

Mr. Vijayabhaskar, who held the Transport portfolio during 2016-21 when Jayalalithaa, O. Panneerselvam and Mr. Palaniswami were Chief Ministers, was among the 25 dissidents who sided with the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK)-led government during the confidence vote tabled by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay in the Assembly on May 13. whip of the party.

But two weeks later, he and 20 others returned to the group led by Mr. Palaniswami, who wrote to Speaker JCD Prabhakar and got the disqualification case against them dropped.

Since that day, there has generally been an eerie silence among the opposition.

‘Suppression of dissent’

Two weeks ago only former Minister of Law C.Ve. Shanmugam, the party’s leading face in Villupuram district, accused the AIADMK general secretary of “refusing to correct mistakes and suppressing dissent” within the party.

Unlike Mr. Shanmugam, Mr. Vijayabhaskar did not launch a tirade against Mr. Palaniswami, but it was quite obvious that he was uncomfortable with what was being proposed to him organizationally. Last Thursday, when Mr Palaniswami announced new party positions for several leaders, including a number of rebels, Mr Vijayabhaskar was appointed as one of the joint propaganda secretaries. Many of the rebels held the post of regional secretary, which was considered the party’s most powerful position in their region.

Contrary to the tradition of taking new positions in the party, the former Minister of Transport did not meet the general secretary and did not thank him for the post.

Several other senior leaders and former Ministers, Natham R. Viswanathan, who was made deputy secretary general, and SP Velumani are also yet to meet Mr. Palaniswami.

He is expected to join TVK

Mr. Vijayabhaskar’s move follows a similar action by his namesake and fellow legislator (representing Viralimalai) a few weeks ago. Two dissidents are expected to join TVK.

The party’s MP (Rajya Sabha) and supporter of general secretary M. Dhanapal responded in the negative when asked whether Mr. Palaniswami’s “stubbornness” prevented an effective compromise between him and the opponents and wondered: “Isn’t it Edapadiar’s action?” [Mr. Palaniswami] “Does giving new positions to opponents in the party show that he is quite flexible and thoughtful?”

‘The ruling party is helpless’

The MP claimed that the ruling party was “desperate” to free itself from the control of the two Communist parties and the Viduthalai Chirtuthaigal Katchi and that the TVK had drawn AIADMK legislators to its side so that it could get “more power, if not its own majority”.