Tamil Nadu political crisis: Rebel AIADMK MLA Balakrishna Reddy backs EPS, submits apology letter amid party turmoil

NEW DELHI: Amid growing factionalism within the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and a series of resignations by rebel legislators, Hosur MLA P Balakrishna Reddy on Tuesday extended support to party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in a sign that a truce may be emerging within sections of the party.According to news agency ANI, Balakrishna Reddy met the assembly secretary and submitted an apology letter stating that he should not be disqualified.His move comes a day after five AIADMK MLAs submitted similar apology letters to the Speaker’s office, expressing support for the Palaniswami faction.The development comes as the AIADMK faces an escalating internal crisis following defections and resignations from the rival camp led by senior leaders C Ve Shanmugam and S P Velumani.The Shanmugam faction MLAs had voted in favour of the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam government during the May 13 trust vote, triggering anti-defection proceedings.Under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, legislators can face disqualification if they vote against the direction of their party without prior approval.The AIADMK had earlier sought disqualification of 25 rebel MLAs for allegedly defying Palaniswami’s directive during the confidence motion.The party’s troubles deepened further on Tuesday after Ambasamudram MLA Esakki Subaya resigned from the Assembly. Speaker JCD Prabhakar initially rejected Subaya’s typed resignation letter and asked him to submit a handwritten copy, which was later accepted.With Subaya’s exit, the number of resignations from the AIADMK camp has risen to four in two days, reducing the party’s strength in the 234-member Assembly to 43 MLAs.On Monday, MLAs Maragatham Kumaravel, P Sathyabama and S Jayakumar resigned from the Assembly and later joined the ruling TVK in the presence of minister Aadhav Arjuna.The total number of vacant Assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu has now risen to five, including Tiruchirappalli East, which was vacated earlier by chief minister C Joseph Vijay after he won from two seats.27 AIADMK MLAs are now backing Palaniswami, while 16 legislators are aligned with the Velumani-Shanmugam camp.The resignations have triggered sharp political reactions, with Palaniswami accusing the ruling TVK of “horse-trading.”Meanwhile, former AIADMK leader and current Tamil Nadu minister K A Sengottaiyan blamed Palaniswami for the exodus of party leaders.“AIADMK remained strong during the leadership of M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa. AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami could not be compared to them; he is the reason why people and party members are moving away from the AIADMK,” Sengottaiyan said.