VILLUPURAM: In a dramatic turn of events for the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), its founder Dr S Ramadoss on Thursday announced to the media at his house in Villupuram district that he would take over the post of party president from his son and former union minister Dr Anbumani Ramadoss with immediate effect.
He said Dr Anbumani will serve as working president and will continue to play a key role in the party’s activities, especially as the party prepares for the 2026 elections. When asked about the reasons for the decision that has shocked party cadres, Dr Ramadoss declined to elaborate and merely said, “many reasons”.
“I am taking up the role of party president with full commitment. This decision is aimed at guiding the younger generation and ensuring the party’s victory,” the 85-year-old leader said.
The timing is even more stark as Union Home Minister and BJP’s chief electoral strategist Amit Shah had reached Chennai on Thursday night and is expected to meet leaders of alliance partners and potential allies on Friday.
The PMK, which continues to be part of the BJP-led NDA, fought the 2024 Lok Sabha election alongside the BJP, though the AIADMK quit the bloc in September 2023. It was rumoured at that time that Dr Ramadoss was not fully in favour of the BJP alliance.
Founder’s announcement rattles PMK cadre and functionaries at all levels
On Thursday, Dr Ramadoss said decisions on future alliances and electoral strategies would be taken after consultations with the party’s leadership council. While Dr Anbumani did not react, sources close to him said the founder’s announcement was not valid since such decisions cannot be taken without convening the party’s general council and therefore Dr Anbumani will continue to act as the president.
Soon after the announcement, many of his supporters gathered at Dr Ramadoss’s residence at Thailapuram in Villupuram and staged a demonstration against the decision. Many of Dr Anbumani’s supporters also met him at his office in Panaiyur near Chennai.
It was well-known that things were not well between the father and son. The disagreement was on display on the stage at the party’s general council meeting in December, when the senior announced that his grandson and Dr Anbumani’s nephew Mugunthan Padmanabhan would be the chief of PMK’s youth wing, a decision that was not accepted by the junior Ramadoss.
The unprecedented development in the 35-year-old party, which had its roots in Vanniyar Sangam and has the Vanniyar community as its core voter base, rattled functionaries and cadres at all level. PMK treasurer Thilagabama was the only senior functionary who came out in public against the decision on Thursday.
In a social media post, she said, “The democracy in the party has been murdered. Until now, all decisions taken by Ayya (Dr Ramadoss) were right. I am someone who has experienced Ayya’s affection. But this decision is wrong,” she said, and added that “Anbu (love)” is everything. She also shared posts from party cadres, echoing similar views.
Dr Anbumani, who is presently a Rajya Sabha MP, took charge as president in 2022 and appeared keen in modernising the Vanniyar-centric party as PMK 2.0. Party functionaries told TNIE that the rift was felt ever since Dr Anbumani took charge of the youth wing. “Every time the party released candidate or office-bearer lists, the key question among functionaries would be whether they were chosen by the senior or the junior,” a source said.
They cautioned that Thursday’s development, if not resolved amicably, could prove detrimental to the party, which has faced considerably erosion in its voter base after the arrival of DMDK, NTK and now facing another contender in TVK floated by actor Vijay. “This family feud only adds to the party’s downfall,” a cadre said bluntly.
Some functionaries said they hoped the development as mere political theatrics. They argued that the move could be a “strategy” to avoid meeting Shah and delay finalising alliance ahead of the Assembly elections and instead bargain better. It can be recalled that DMK also had a similar arrangement when late Chief Minister M Karunanidhi was the president and MK Stalin was the working president, although it was done as per consensus and not a hostile takeover as Dr Ramadoss seems to have done now.
(With inputs from Krithika Srinivasan @ Villupuram)
