Chennai, May 15:
The internal power struggle within the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam escalated sharply on Thursday, with rival factions staking claim to majority support among MLAs and moving against each other under the anti-defection law.
A faction led by senior leaders C. Ve. Shanmugam and S. P. Velumani asserted that 25 of the party’s 47 MLAs backed their directive during the confidence vote of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam government headed by C. Joseph Vijay.
Claiming this as the legitimate majority, the faction petitioned Assembly Speaker J. C. D. Prabhakar to disqualify 22 MLAs, including party chief Edappadi K. Palaniswami, for allegedly defying their whip.
Citing communication through email and WhatsApp, faction whip C. Vijayabaskar maintained that their directive to support the government was officially conveyed and followed by the majority.
In response, Palaniswami’s camp hit back, with its own representatives urging the Speaker to disqualify the rebel MLAs for not adhering to the party’s stance against the government during the floor test.