AIADMK busy with poll work in 20 Assembly seats, says O Panneerselvam

Chennai: Deputy Chief Minister and AIADMK coordinator O. Panneerselvam on Monday said DMK president M K Stalin and AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran have been meeting secretly "several times".

"We are continuously getting information that Stalin and Dhinakaran have secretly met and held discussions several times", OPS said, backing the recent claim by fisheries minister D Jayakumar that the DMK chief and AMMK leader were holding secret parleys. 

Speaking to reporters at the airport here before emplaning for Madurai for the Deepavali holiday at hometown Theni, OPS answered a question on the lukewarm response to the AIADMK invitation to those who had left the party to return. 

"It was our party's generosity and magnanimity to have welcomed them to return to our fold. Now it is for them to accept the invitation or not", he 
said.

Days after the high court on October 25 upheld the disqualification of 18 AIADMK legislators loyal to TTV, the ruling party had said they and others who backed the AMMK leader were welcome to return to the parent party. 

OPS said the teams set up by the party to work for the by-elections in the 20 Assembly constituencies have begun work in all seriousness. The party would focus on winning all the 20 seats, he insisted when asked to comment on reports that the CM had told the party functionaries to focus all energies on winning just eight seats out of the 20, to ensure the government enjoyed majority in the Assembly.

"The Chief Minister has not spoken of winning just four or eight seats. This is merely your guesswork", he shot back, adding that the CM at a recent meeting of the party functionaries exhorted all to work hard to gain victory for the AIADMK in all the 20 seats, including the two that had fallen vacant following the death of their MLAs.

"The preparatory work is being done by the by-election teams and the leaders put in charge. There's no doubt that the AIADMK's Two-Leaves will emerge triumphant," OPS declared, while explaining that screening electoral rolls and interacting with local community leaders and opinion makers are among the tasks given to the poll teams.

Asked about the AIADMK options for alliances for the Lok Sabha poll expected next year, OPS said alliances would be considered at poll time and with like-minded parties.

OPS and EPS had presided over a session of senior AIADMK functionaries at the party headquarters here to choose the teams to work for the party's victory in the 20 constituencies, where the by-elections are expected to be notified anytime with the Madras High Court recently vacating its stay on notifying the 18 vacancies while upholding the disqualification of these MLAs loyal to TTV Dhinakaran.