19 MLAs revolt, withdraw support to CM

Twenty-four hours after the two AIADMK factions merged in Tamil Nadu, 19 rebel party legislators owing allegiance to jailed Sasikala and her nephew T.T.V Dhinakaran met Governor Vidyasagar Rao and withdrew support to Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami plunging the government into a fresh crisis.

Following the rebellion, Palaniswami now commands the support of only 115 MLAs excluding that of the Speaker in the 233-member House (one seat vacated by Jayalalithaa), even short of a simple majority.

Reacting instantly, Leader of the Opposition and DMK working president M.K. Stalin wrote to the Governor urging him to immediately call for a floor test in the Assembly, alleging that Palaniswami was running a minority government.

The rebel MLAs, who met the Governor at Raj Bhavan in the morning and handed over individual, but identically-worded letters expressing lack of confidence in Palaniswami. “Our aim is to install a new chief minister in place of Palaniswami. He has joined hands with O. Panneerselvam, who had rebelled against our leader Sasikala and was instrumental in freezing the name and election symbol of the AIADMK,” said Thangatami-lselvan, a staunch Dhinakaran loyalist.

By evening, many of these MLAs were taken to the Windflower Resort and Spa in neighbouring Puducherry in a repeat of the resort politics that was witnessed in February this year when Panneerselvam had broken ranks.