CHENNAI: The internal fault lines in the AIADMK are threatening to crystallise into a separate bloc within the legislature party, with dissident leaders increasingly asserting their position against the leadership of general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami.
The latest indication came on Thursday when rebel group leaders Natham R Viswanathan and SP Velumani defied Palaniswami’s directive to lead the party’s agitations scheduled for August 14, demanding a complete waiver of crop loans availed by farmers and pressing for other demands.
While Natham R Viswanathan has been asked to lead the AIADMK demonstration in Ramanathapuram, SP Velumani, whose stronghold is Coimbatore, has been directed to lead the agitation in Theni.
Former Ministers P Thangamani and KP Anbazhagan have been asked to lead the agitations in Salem and Ranipet.
In a joint statement, Viswanathan and Velumani said they would extend their full support to the agitations but would not lead them as directed by the party leadership, since they had not been allotted their respective native districts to organise the demonstrations.
The statement, which came in the form of their second letter to Palaniswami and was also released to the media, assumes significance as it marks another instance of the dissident leaders choosing to publicly articulate their differences with the party leadership.
The decision to release the letter to the media also indicates that the differences are no longer confined to internal discussions.
Viswanathan and Velumani said that despite the assurance given by Palaniswami that all those who had been relieved of their party posts would be reinstated in their original posts, the promise had not been kept so far.
"Besides, you (Palaniswami) have been delaying a response to our written requisition in this regard. In this backdrop, directing us to lead agitations in other districts is tantamount to ignoring the loyalists of party leaders MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa," they charged.
With such instances occurring with increasing frequency, the factional divide within the AIADMK appears to be acquiring a more organised character.
This has triggered speculation over whether the rebel group could eventually begin functioning as a separate bloc within the State Assembly, giving a formal political shape to the differences that have so far remained within the party.