EPS Leads AIADMK Review Meetings in Chennai to Rebuild Party After Defections

AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami led a series of district-level review meetings in Chennai on Wednesday to restructure the party and prepare for upcoming elections following recent electoral setbacks. The meetings, held during the second week of an ongoing party review process, aimed to address recent leadership defections to the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) and revive the party's morale.

During Wednesday's sessions, Palaniswami met with office bearers from Erode East, Erode West, Thiruvallur East, and Thiruvallur West districts. He elicited views from the party functionaries as part of a post-mortem on the recent electoral debacle, which had triggered an exodus of several top-level and middle-level leaders to the TVK.

Palaniswami has already completed discussions with leaders from 34 of the party's 84 districts. He sought to instill hope among the remaining functionaries, stating that while some leaders had departed, the party's loyal voter base remained intact. He urged party members to begin election work immediately, without waiting for the official announcement of local body polls or by-elections.

Addressing rumors that have circulated regarding a clandestine coalition between the DMK and the AIADMK to block the TVK's rise, Palaniswami denied any such plans. He noted that the false charge of an impending DMK alliance had been cited by several defectors as their reason for leaving the party.

Once review meetings for the remaining 34 districts are completed, Palaniswami plans to call an executive committee meeting to ratify his decisions. Following this, he intends to convene the general council, fulfilling a demand made by several leaders opposed to his leadership.

Party sources indicated that the AIADMK has also lifted its undeclared moratorium on criticizing the TVK, with recent statements from senior leaders like D Jayakumar and R B Udhayakumar reflecting a more aggressive political stance.