Chennai, Oct 1:
Former AIADMK Minister Semmalai joined the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in the presence of Chief Minister and TVK president C Joseph Vijay in Dharapuram on Wednesday.
Semmalai, who had stayed away from active politics after the Assembly election, met Minister and TVK Salem Central district secretary A Vijay Tamilan Parthiban before formally joining the party. His induction comes months after he announced his retirement from active politics.
In May, Semmalai had said the AIADMK had weakened and alleged that the party leadership had not taken adequate steps to strengthen the organisation. He had also called for the party’s General Council to be convened after the Assembly election to analyse the reasons for its defeat.
Semmalai was not given a ticket to contest the Assembly election. A long-time AIADMK functionary since the MGR era, he was elected MLA four times and served as a Minister in former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s Cabinet in 2001. He was also elected to the Lok Sabha once.
His move to the TVK comes amid the entry of several former AIADMK ministers and leaders into the ruling party. Semmalai hails from Salem, the home district of AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami.