MDMK nominates Vaiko for Rajya Sabha seat

Chennai: The MDMK general secretary, Mr Vaiko will be the party's nominee for the 2019 Rajya Sabha seat that was apportioned to it by the DMK, as per the seat-sharing agreement during the recent Lok Sabha polls. Elections to six vacancies from Tamil Nadu to the Upper House are due this month. The DMK has already announced its two nominees in Mr P Wilson and M. Shammugham.

Mr. Vaiko's candidature for the Rajya Sabha seat was unanimously approved at a meeting of the high level committee of the MDMK presided by the party veteran Tirupur Duraiswamy.

A veteran politician, Vaiko had earlier been DMK member of the Rajya Sabha which he entered in 1978 and had been in the Upper House for three terms. He was also later elected to Lok Sabha twice. In 1993, Vaiko founded the MDMK after he was expelled from the DMK on the issue of support to the militant outfit, Tamil Tigers, LTTE. There is a sedition case pending against Vaiko in a special court in Chennai, the judgment in which is expected to be delivered on July 5.

Mr. Vaiko, later in the evening met the DMK president M K Stalin and thanked him for allotting a Raj-ya Sabha seat to the MDMK.

Meanwhile, AIADMK MLA, Rathinasbapathy, who recently got into trouble  for supporting dissident MLA T T V Dhinakaran, on Tuesday met the Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami to formally reiterate his commitment to the ruling AIADMK. "I have returned to 'Thaai Kazhagam (mother organisation) and I will give an explanation to the notice sent by the Speaker," Rathinasabapathy said.

The other two AIADMK MLAs', Kalaichelvan and Prabhu will also soon formally return to the parent body, Rathinasapapathy added.

 It was to thwart the imminent disqualification of the three AIADMK MLAs' that the DMK had given notice to move a no-Trust motion against the Speaker, Thiru P Dhanapal. Later, the DMK withdrew the motion as it would not serve any purpose following the MLAs' reiterating their support to the AIADMK leadership post-LS elections.