Uniting divided loyalties gets tougher for AIADMK

CHENNAI: Once bonded together by ‘Amma loyalty’, the AIADMK MLAs are now splitting into smaller groups along community and regional leanings, but want to stick together to safeguard another four years of stint in the  Assembly as a ruling party member.

Edappadi Palanisami has a tough task managing the pulls and pressure of the splinter groups which could put forth various demands in public and private. But, the ruling party leaders are confident that they would not rock the boat since everyone will end up as losers if the government is toppled.

As long as J. Jayalalithaa was alive, caste or preferences did not come into play in the AIADMK. Besides, the MLAs of any region or district did not join hands together to form any kind of pressure group. But, Jayalalithaa’s death and lack of a charismatic successor has given the go by to the much-hyped military discipline of the party.  

The AIADMK won 41 MLAs in the northern districts, 39 in the Kongu region, 24 in the delta districts and 32 in the south. With the rise of Palanisami to power, the Kongu lobby comprising ministers of the Kongu Velalar community from the districts of Erode, Coimbatore, Salem, Namakkal and Tiruppur started rallying around him.

Of late, former ministers ‘Thoppu’ N. Venkatachalam, belonging to the same community,  has started gathering around him a group of MLAs who feel sidelined by the ministers in the region. With the dominant upper caste members asserting themselves, 28 Dalit MLAs held a meeting to demand their share in power as per their strength.

A chunk of the party legislators from the southern districts is backing Dhinakaran, while almost all members from the delta districts are supporters of Sasikala and now under the control of her younger brother Divakaran. Together, the loyalists of Sasikala’s family could be more than one-third required for a split and have the strength to topple the Palanisami government, in case of real efforts to oust them from the party.

All MLAs are backing Palanisami’s next move to prepare affidavits of party cadre in every district to be submitted to the Election Commission of India to retrieve the ‘two leaves’ symbol. The outcome of the battle for ‘two leaves’ and Palanisami’s management of his MLAs will be the key.