Two AIADMK MLAs skip Palaniswami’s meet prompting exit buzz

Chennai, Jul 7 (PTI) Former state minister K C Veeramani and Arcot MLA S M Sukumar skipped the party's consultative meeting chaired by AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami here on Tuesday, triggering speculation of a renewed crisis in the party, which is already facing high-profile exits. Their conspicuous absence signalled potential internal dissent. Former state ministers Dr C Vijayabaskar and M R Vijayabaskar, and other members such as Maragatham Kumaravel, S Jayakumar, P Sathyabama and Esakki Subaya, have already resigned as MLAs and joined the ruling TVK. Veeramani, legislator from the Jolarpet Assembly constituency, and Sukumar were among the 25 rebel MLAs who defied the party diktat and voted in favour of the TVK government during the floor test in the Assembly on May 13. The cross-voting by the members enabled the ruling party to obtain 144 "ayes" in the 234-member Assembly, far above the simple majority of 118. Both Veeramani and Sukumar were stripped of their district secretary posts, as were a few others, following the cross-voting, and were offered other insignificant roles in the party after the rebel MLAs — except C Ve Shanmugam — reconciled with Palaniswami, agreeing to function under his leadership. At the consultative meeting of office bearers from Ranipet and Tirupattur districts, Palaniswami reportedly said the present TVK government was unlikely to last its full term in office. He called upon party members to gear up for the upcoming local bodies election and strive for victory. A comfortable win in the civic polls was crucial for the party to return to power in the state, a senior leader quoted him as saying. Today's meeting is part of an ongoing series of consultations Palaniswami is holding with district functionaries to analyse the recent Assembly election results and work out a strategy for future polls. PTI JSP SSK