Two AIADMK factions submit disqualification petitions with speaker

CHennai: challenger factions of the All republic of india Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) on th submitted petitions to Tamil Nadu gathering talker JCD Prabhakar seeking disqualification of each other’s MLAs after the party split over extending support to the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).A delegation led by senior AIADMK leader K P Munusamy, who belongs to the faction headed by party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami, met the Speaker and later visited Lok Bhavan, the Governor’s official residence, seeking disqualification of 25 MLAs aligned with leaders C Ve Shanmugham and S P Velumani.The rival faction also met the Speaker and sought disqualification of 22 MLAs backing the Palaniswami camp, a senior party leader said.The AIADMK, which won 47 seats as part of the National Democratic Alliance in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, is now divided over supporting the ruling TVK government.During the floor test in the Assembly on May 13, 25 legislators belonging to the Shanmugham faction voted in support of the TVK government, while 22 MLAs from the Palaniswami faction opposed it.Former minister C Vijayabhaskar, who claimed he was the officially recognised party whip in the Assembly, said the faction had sought action against the 22 MLAs for defying the whip.Shanmugham had earlier claimed that his faction enjoyed majority support among AIADMK legislators and convened a legislature party meeting where Velumani was elected legislature party leader and Vijayabhaskar was appointed whip.“The legislature party is decided by majority of MLAs and we have the majority. As a whip and as per protocol, I communicated to all the 47 legislators through WhatsApp and email asking them to vote in favour of the state government. But the 22 MLAs did not follow that. They did not obey the instructions given by me. As we have the majority, we have sought the Speaker to take action as per the law and disqualify them,” Vijayabhaskar said.He added that the Speaker had received their memorandum and expressed hope for a “good” decision.Speaking to reporters, Velumani said Palaniswami, as general secretary, did not have the authority to expel party members once a split had emerged.“If a rift or a split occurs in an organisation due to difference of opinion, no decision can be taken from that date onwards,” he said, adding that differences within the party surfaced on May 5.Velumani also demanded that Palaniswami convene a general council meeting to discuss the reasons behind the party’s electoral defeat.“We have come to the third place in this polls. We must sit together and decide on what are the reasons behind it. The party must be strengthened and that is our objective,” he said.Munusamy, however, maintained that only the party general secretary had the authority to expel members for anti-party activities.“Following the developments in the Assembly on May 13, a complaint letter has been submitted to the Speaker and also to the Governor seeking action as they acted in violation of the general secretary’s instructions,” he said.