CHENNAI/RANIPET: Even as signs of discontent continue to surface within the AIADMK, former minister K C Veeramani and Ranipet MLA S M Sukumar were conspicuous by their absence at the meeting convened by party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday to review the Assembly election results.
The two MLAs, who had voted in favour of the TVK government during the confidence motion on May 13 and later apologised to the party leadership to avoid disqualification, skipped the meeting for different reasons. While Sukumar attended a meeting convened by the Ranipet collector, he said Veeramani had travelled to China on work.
After backing the TVK government, both leaders were stripped of their party posts. Though they were later assigned new responsibilities — Veeramani as organising secretary and Sukumar as deputy propaganda secretary — they were dissatisfied as their earlier positions were not restored. On June 30, they joined eight other senior leaders in issuing a joint statement rejecting the new appointments and declaring that they would continue only as primary members of the party.
When contacted with regard to their absence from the meeting, Sukumar said the collector’s meeting, which dealt with issues concerning people in his constituency, could not be skipped. “AIADMK deputy general secretary K P Munusamy informed me about the Chennai meeting, and I attended the collectors’ meeting with his permission,” he said.
Rejecting suggestions that his absence was linked to his dissatisfaction over the party post assigned to him, Sukumar said the party’s internal affairs had nothing to do with his decision.
Speaking to reporters later in Ranipet, Sukumar categorically dismissed speculation that he was planning to join another party. “I might even go to the crematorium than join any other party,” he remarked.
On Veeramani’s absence, Sukumar said the former minister had travelled to China on work. Veeramani could not be reached for comment.
‘Sasikala, TTV likely to join AIADMK again’
Erode: AIADMK’s former interim general secretary V K Sasikala and AMMK general secretary T T V Dhinakaran, who were expelled from the AIADMK, are likely to be inducted into the party again, said K C Karuppanan, former AIADMK minister, in Erode on Tuesday. He was speaking at a district-level consultative meeting of the Anna Trade Union.
