AIADMK factions call truce as flock returns to EPS
After nearly two weeks of public rebellion, dramatic speeches, competing petitions, resignation shocks and negotiations over ministerial berths, the rebel faction inside the AIADMK decided on Wednesday to return to the official faction.
The rapprochement came only after the rebel bloc led by former minister S P Velumani began visibly shrinking, with resignations, defections and quiet returns to Edappadi K Palaniswami’s camp threatening to politically isolate the faction that had stunned Tamil Nadu politics earlier this month by backing Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay during the Assembly trust vote.
By Wednesday afternoon, leaders from both sides were speaking the language of reconciliation. The same legislators who recently accused each other of forgery, betrayal and conspiracy now arrived together before Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar, requesting that no action be initiated against rebel MLAs under the anti-defection law.
“There is no split in the party, only differences of opinion,” Velumani told reporters after meeting the Speaker alongside several MLAs and senior leaders. “We are all united.” The speed of the reconciliation reflected the rapidly changing arithmetic inside the Assembly.
The AIADMK rebellion, which began with 25 MLAs defying the party whip and supporting the Vijay-led TVK government during the confidence motion on May 13, had initially appeared capable of permanently destabilising Palaniswami’s leadership.
Rebel leaders openly demanded an internal review of repeated electoral defeats and hinted at broader dissatisfaction with the party’s functioning after yet another crushing election loss.