AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswamy will chair the meeting with the party's district secretaries, MPs and MLAs at MGR Maaligai.
Published Sep 24, 2023 | 8:40 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 24, 2023 | 9:08 PM
Edappadi K Palaniswami. (File pic/EPSTamilnadu/Facebook)
Amidst the brewing dissent with Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai and an imminent formal breakdown of the alliance with the saffron party, the principal Opposition party in Tamil Nadu — the AIADMK — is convening a meeting with its district secretaries, MPs, and MLAs on Monday, 25 September.
The AIADMK issued a statement saying that its general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami — popularly known as EPS — would chair the meeting at 3.45 pm on Monday at the party headquarters, MGR Maaligai, in Chennai.
While the agenda of the meeting was not made public, speculations are rife that topics like the alliance with the BJP and preparation for upcoming elections would be discussed.
தலைமைக் கழக அறிவிப்பு. pic.twitter.com/5DegzyJkKr
— AIADMK – Say No To Drugs & DMK (@AIADMKOfficial) September 24, 2023
Referring to the speculations that the AIADMK would part ways with the BJP, AIADMK IT wing secretary Kovai Sathyan told South First: “The meeting will put to rest the speculations that have been doing rounds in the media.”
Lately, a public spat has been going on between the leaders of both parties. In one instance, AIADMK organising secretary D Jayakumar said on 18 September that the BJP was not part of his party’s alliance.
However, a high-level delegation immediately tried to rectify the situation by meeting BJP national president JP Nadda in New Delhi on 22 September.
Although the details of the meeting have not yet been made public, a senior AIADMK leader told South First that the delegation expressed concern over Annamalai’s statements regarding former chief minister CN Annadurai.
Even though senior AIADMK leaders, including Sellur K Raju, reiterated that the alliance was strong, speculations were rife about its discontinuation.
The AIADMK’s discontent with Annamalai became public following his claim on 11 September that the late Annadurai had to hide in Madurai after the anti-Hindu remarks he made at an event in 1956.
“Annadurai, the founder of the AIADMK’s parent party DMK, had to hide in Madurai and could only travel after he issued an apology, following an objection from freedom fighter and Forward Bloc leader Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar,” Annamalai said.
AIADMK leaders condemned Annamalai’s statement, calling it a deliberate insult to the Dravidian stalwart.
Yet, Annamalai refused to withdraw his comment, saying he never spoke ill of the Dravidian leader but merely stated facts from an incident that took place in 1956.
The BJP’s aggressive politics has put the AIADMK in a spot in the past because Annamalai at times views both the Dravidian parties — the AIADMK and the DMK — through the same prism.
It was not the first time that the state BJP chief made such statements about its alliance party. In June, Annamalai indirectly made a dig at former AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa by calling her “corrupt”, prompting Tamil Nadu’s chief Opposition party to pass a resolution against him.
Adding to the woes, the BJP also sought to contest 15 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu in the 2024 general election — a move which was seen as an unreasonable demand by the AIADMK.
Even though the Lok Sabha elections are just six months away, EPS has been telling cadres to prepare for the state Assembly elections, assuming that the BJP would implement the simultaneous-election formula — One Nation, One Election — from 2024.
The meeting will also take stock of the election preparedness, said Kovai Sathyan.
“We started preparing for the elections five months ago. A strategy for the way forward will be formulated in the meeting,” he told South First.
