Chennai: After Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) and C. V. Shanmugam (CVS) withdrew their mutual disqualification complaints submitted to the Speaker, the AIADMK split appeared to have ended. However, rifts within the party ranks show no signs of going away, as several senior leaders, former ministers, and MLAs continue to resign.
Many of these party leaders have cited internal conflicts, denied opportunities, and lack of leadership as a reason for quitting the party, while many others see the ruling TVK as a better career choice.
Around 16 former AIADMK ministers and leaders have quit the party after the reconciliation, and 12 of them joined the TVK. Besides the senior leaders and MLAs, more than 300 district functionaries have also switched to the TVK.
The latest resignation came on Tuesday when former health minister and Viralimalai MLA C Vijayabaskar quit. He had been with AIADMK since a young age and was elected to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Pudukkottai in 2001 and from Viralimalai in 2011, 2016, 2021, and 2026.
He said that he was leaving a chapter of his life and it was saddening that the party had been experiencing trials and tribulations on account of wrong decisions of “one individual” .
The EPS camp had asked the Speaker to disqualify about 25 rebel MLAs led by Shanmugam and S. P. Velumani for allegedly defying the party whip and voting in favour of the TVK government.
On their part, the Shanmugam-Velumani camp filed a counter-petition seeking the disqualification of EPS and 21-22 MLAs, arguing their faction represented the legitimate AIADMK legislature party and that EPS’s group had violated its directions.
The EPS-CVS patch-up appears to have done little to address the deep-rooted divisions within the AIADMK. What began as a factional dispute has exposed broader structural and organisational weaknesses, including caste-based fragmentation, denial of opportunities to loyalists, allegations of dynastic politics, and eroding regional support.
These factors have steadily weakened the party’s organisational strength and political relevance in Tamil Nadu, particularly after its poor performance in the recent Assembly elections.
The resignation of actor and former deputy propaganda secretary Gautami Tadimalla both from the post and as a primary member is the latest blow to the party.
In a letter to EPS on Sunday, Gautami stated she was stepping down due to “prevailing current political circumstances” to focus on social service. She had joined AIADMK in February 2024 after leaving the BJP, but sources indicate her request for a ticket from Rajapalayam for the 2026 Assembly elections went unheeded.
When ThePrint contacted her to ask about the reasons for her resignation, she said, “I do not want to comment on it right now. I will be holding a presser to discuss more in the coming days.”
On the same day, other AIADMK leaders, including former minister K T Pachamal and former MPs N Balaganga, R Vanaroja and Ilavarasan also quit, and joined the TVK.
On 6 June, former ministers and leaders, including Udumalai K. Radhakrishnan, MC Sampath, Kadambur C. Raju, and NR Sivapathi, joined the TVK at its Panaiyur headquarters.
After the EPS-Shanmugam reconciliation, there was a massive shift of the AIADMK members to the TVK on 29 May when over 300 AIADMK members, including former ministers Vellamandi Natarajan and Anandan quit the party.
While EPS alleged horse-trading, the dissent within the party is quite clear. Immediately after the Assembly elections, the rebel group of around 25 MLAs, aligned with the Shanmugam-Velumani camp, had expressed dissatisfaction with the party leadership.
Later four MLAs from this bloc, including Maragatham Kumaravel, P. Sathyabama, S. Jayakumar, and later Esakki Subaya, resigned from the Assembly and joined TVK, reducing AIADMK’s strength in the 234-member house from 47 to 43.
Also Read: EPS softens, Tamil Nadu Speaker drops action against AIADMK MLAs who backed TVK in floor test
‘Opportunities denied’
While reconciliation efforts have occurred, the damage to party morale appears lasting.
Political observers note that the official withdrawal of complaints between factions offer hope of reconciliation but it can be temporary, and that the party needs to do more than make allegations of horse trading.
“The issues of denial of tickets to loyalists, or better opportunities in other parties happen in every party. The two factions wanted to avoid the split so they withdrew the complaints but more members keep quitting and it not just affects the morale of the party cadres, it weakens the party internally,” said political analyst Arun Kumar.
Former minister S. Semmalai, who resigned in mid-May citing “immense mental anguish” over post-election developments and internal rifts, told ThePrint that the party is not in a strong position anymore.
“The party cannot even be compared with its strength in the previous decades after being founded and strengthened by M.G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa. Many senior leaders were denied opportunities after Amma’s demise as the leadership did not recognise their contributions.”
Analysts point out that despite the apparent reconciliation between the EPS and CVS factions, deep-rooted challenges continue to plague the party. “The party members want a leadership change, there are limited alliance options, and a lack of young leaders. EPS needs to evaluate the current political scenario, improve the party’s regional reach, and strengthen the party organisation to retain his leadership and revive the party,” noted Arun Kumar.
Former MP P. Venugopal also quit last month, pointing to declining support to the party from certain communities and poor decision-making on giving Assembly tickets.
Former AIADMK MLA from Mylapore, Natraj, who was among the many to quit and join TVK, told ThePrint, “Many people left the party after our leader Jayalalithaa’s demise but EPS had an opportunity to hold everyone together. With time, the AIADMK turned out to be a Gounder party, instead of being a single large party in the state.”
Stating that the loss of many leaders like O Panneerselvam and KA Sengottaiyan cost the AIADMK its strength, Natraj said the party is restricted to a minuscule player. “The AIADMK’s support from the southern and western regions is also lost. EPS has not delivered as was his duty so we do not see a future for the party,” added Natraj.
Dynastic politics
Even after accepting EPS as the party leader, C V Shanmugam recently alleged the AIADMK was promoting dynastic politics, rather than elevating party cadres.
This came after he criticised reports of efforts to elevate EPS’s son Mithun to key posts like youth wing or IT wing secretary. “If he wants to enter politics, let him enter openly. Why such drama?” Shanmugam told the media.
The AIADMK has not made any official comments on any developments of Mithun’s entry to politics.
Shanmugam credited the alliance with Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) for many of AIADMK’s wins in northern districts, claiming the party would have not won those seats on its own, due to the “weaknesses” in EPS’s core base.
However, Shanmugam refused to comment on what the party is doing to strengthen itself amid the flurry of resignations.
Political observer Sunil Kumar noted that Shanmugam’s statement reflects senior leaders are not happy with the EPS leadership and Shanmugam admitted openly that the Vanniyar community support for AIADMK has also reduced.
Sunil Kumar further added that the party’s troubles run much deeper than the recent factional spat and the party is in turmoil because it has not worked as a united front for years now.
“The electoral performance of the AIADMK has declined after 2019 and the cadres also split after Jayalalithaa’s demise. The northern belt cadres were led by C V Shanmugam and in the western belt, they were led by Velumani,” said political analyst Sunil Kumar.
He added, “C Vijayabaskar had his own support of cadres from Thevar community, and the cadres supporting EPS from Gounder community were divided as a separate section. There was no unity among leaders to lead the cadres as one unit,” said political analyst Sunil Kumar.”
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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