A day after failing to secure positions in the Cabinet of Vijay, a senior leader from the rebel faction of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) publicly denied reports suggesting that the group intended to split the party, asserting instead that their disagreement was limited to internal leadership and electoral strategy issues.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, senior AIADMK leader SP Velumani clarified that the rebel faction continued to recognise Edappadi K Palaniswami, popularly known as EPS, as the leader of the party.
Velumani stated that the rebels were not seeking to break the AIADMK and insisted that their only demand was for the party leadership to convene a general council meeting to openly discuss the reasons behind the party’s defeat in the recently concluded Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
According to Velumani, the rebel MLAs did not have any interest in obtaining ministerial berths in the new government led by Vijay and his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). He further alleged that attempts were being made to politically damage and misrepresent the rebel group.
Velumani also acknowledged the electoral reality that voters had strongly supported the TVK while the AIADMK had suffered a significant setback in the elections.
Political observers noted that fellow rebel leader CV Shanmugam was absent during Velumani’s media interaction, which added further speculation regarding internal discussions within the rebel faction.
Velumani, along with 24 other rebel AIADMK MLAs, had earlier voted in favour of the TVK-led government during the Assembly floor test, creating one of the biggest political crises faced by the AIADMK since the election results.
In the recently concluded Assembly elections, the TVK emerged as the single-largest party with 108 seats, while the AIADMK secured 47 seats and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) won 59 seats.
Velumani’s latest remarks are now being viewed as an apparent political retreat or recalibration that could temporarily calm speculation regarding a formal split within the AIADMK legislature party.
Since the TVK’s rise to power, repeated reports and rumours had suggested that sections of the AIADMK might either formally merge with Vijay’s party or extend long-term support to the new government.
Although EPS consistently denied any possibility of division within the AIADMK and maintained that the party remained united under his leadership, tensions intensified after leaders like Velumani and CV Shanmugam publicly urged him to step down from the leadership position following the election defeat.
The crisis reached its peak during the Assembly floor test held on May 13, when 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs voted in support of the TVK government while the remaining AIADMK legislators opposed it.
Following the rebellion, Edappadi Palaniswami removed several dissident leaders from party positions and initiated proceedings seeking the disqualification of MLAs who had voted in favour of the government.
However, CV Shanmugam rejected those actions and argued that EPS did not possess the authority to remove them from party posts, describing the disciplinary measures as politically invalid.
Despite backing the TVK government during the floor test, the rebel faction ultimately failed to secure Cabinet representation. Their hopes of ministerial positions reportedly collapsed after parties supporting the TVK government — including the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and Left parties — strongly opposed accommodating rebel AIADMK MLAs in the Cabinet.
Reports suggested that some allies even warned Vijay that they could reconsider support for the government if rebel AIADMK leaders were rewarded with ministerial posts.
The TVK government, which currently remains short of a simple majority in the 234-member Assembly by around 10 seats, is presently being supported by allies including the Indian National Congress, the VCK, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Left Front parties.
With the Cabinet expansion now completed and all available ministerial positions already allocated, political analysts believe Velumani’s latest statements are likely aimed at repositioning the rebel camp strategically within the AIADMK while avoiding immediate disqualification risks or political isolation.
His remarks are therefore being interpreted as an effort to reduce tensions inside the party and possibly reopen channels of negotiation with the official AIADMK leadership, at least for the time being.
