AIADMK stronger despite splinter groups, claims EPS

Rejecting calls for the integration of AIADMK splinter groups, party general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) asserted in Coimbatore on Thursday that the party has increased its vote share in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections compared to 2019. “The party is strong. We have secured more votes than what we got in the last elections. Whereas, what have those who parted ways with us got this time?” he questioned.

EPS dismissed the relevance of the newly formed ‘AIADMK Integration Committee’ and criticized the credentials of its members. “Is that a committee? Who are they? I cannot respond to each,” he remarked. The committee, established by former AIADMK leaders V. Pugazhendhi, K.C. Palaniswamy, and J.C.D. Prabhakar, aims to unify the various factions that have split from AIADMK after the death of former chief minister J. Jayalalithaa.

In response to claims that AIADMK’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha polls necessitated unification, EPS said, “First, do not call this a defeat. We have increased our vote share.” He argued that AIADMK has grown stronger since the splinter groups left, citing statistical data to back his claims. EPS highlighted that the DMK’s vote share has decreased from 33.5% in 2019 to 26.9% in 2024, while AIADMK’s vote share has seen a 1% increase despite the presence of star campaigners in the DMK and BJP fronts.

“There is a false campaign launched to project that AIADMK has suffered severe drubbing. It’s not true,” he stated. EPS emphasized that the increase in AIADMK’s vote share was achieved under challenging circumstances and predicted further success in future elections.