Last Updated:
Palaniswami should expect a galaxy of surprise moves from these friends-turned-foes as we head deeper into the election season
Leaders had vacillated between openly challenging Palaniswami’s leadership and tacitly appealing for a return to the party, with a few riders. File pic/PTI
As Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK continues to look formidable and closes in on the TVK, arch-rival AIADMK appears to be combating a band of ousted or exited leaders.
When ruled by AIADMK icon and former chief minister J Jayalalithaa, the AIADMK appeared like a single-minded entity with “military discipline”. Strongmen would live perpetually in adoration of their leader and the fear of banishment—should someone so much as whisper about their disloyalty. That fear was largely due to the closedness of Jayalalithaa and the trusted coterie around her, helmed by VK Sasikala.
Nine years after her passing, the AIADMK appears diametrically opposed in character and conduct, receiving direct & veiled threats to its leadership and high-profile exits. Every time, Palaniswami has had to assert his title and leadership to keep the flock.
Electorally, each of the four individuals who have niggled Palaniswami over the last 9 years—VK Sasikala, TTV Dinakaran, O Panneerselvam, and KA Sengottaiyan—may not deliver a huge dent in AIADMK’s performance next year, but together they would emerge as a damaging front, particularly in the southern districts.
TTV Dhinakaran had struck out on his own—the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam—but wasn’t able to win a single seat since 2017. Panneerselvam had hogged headlines often but had steadily descended into political wilderness since then. He contested in the Lok Sabha polls last year but did not make much impact. VK Sasikala, a close aide of late Jayalalithaa, too has been a case of high-decibel empty threats.
The leaders had vacillated between openly challenging Palaniswami’s leadership and tacitly appealing for a return to the party, with a few riders. However, Palaniswami had held steady on his decision: the ousted will remain ousted. Across various capacities and instances, these leaders had shown proximity with the BJP, which—for reasons best known to them—had entertained them despite Palaniswami’s standoffish attitude.
Palaniswami should expect a galaxy of surprise moves from these friends-turned-foes as we head deeper into the election season. Sengottaiyan might find himself responding to their barbs more often than he would like, even as the DMK and the TVK lock horns in a fiery battle. In any field, it does not bode well to be locked in battle with the sub-primaries.
Poornima Murali, Senior Special Correspondent at CNN-News18, has reported for over a decade on civic and political issues in Tamil Nadu. She has been helming the Chennai bureau for the channel for years now. A …Read More
Poornima Murali, Senior Special Correspondent at CNN-News18, has reported for over a decade on civic and political issues in Tamil Nadu. She has been helming the Chennai bureau for the channel for years now. A … Read More
November 06, 2025, 20:01 IST
Read More
