Edappadi K Palaniswami
Credit: PTI File Photo
Chennai: After ruling out the readmission of expelled leaders such as V K Sasikala, O Panneerselvam, and T T V Dhinakaran, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is now reaching out to the influential Mukulathors or Thevars – an umbrella term for Agamudaiyars, Kallars, and Maravars – the community to which all three leaders belong.
During his meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Tuesday night, the main demand that Palaniswami placed before the Union Government, at least on the record, was conferring Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian award, on freedom fighter and Mukulathor icon Muthuramalinga Thevar.
A fortnight ago, Palaniswami had stirred a hornets' nest by reviving the contentious proposal to rename Madurai Airport after Thevar -- an issue previously pushed to the backseat by political parties due to its sensitive nature.
Palaniswami’s moves are seen as a desperate attempt to rebuild bridges with the community, which has favoured the AIADMK since the time of its founding by the late M G Ramachandran in 1972. However, his decision to expel her nephew Dhinakaran, and Panneerselvam, over the years led the Thevars to drift from the AIADMK, albeit for now.
The party was pushed to the third position in many Mukulathor-dominated Lok Sabha seats in 2024 polls with the BJP and its allies like OPS and TTV emerging as the runner-up. Despite this setback, EPS has been adamant that he will not let the expelled leaders return to AIADMK as he is very clear that his authority should not be questioned and there should be no power centers within the AIADMK.
“Though we maintain in public that Mukulathors continue to remain with us, that is not the case. We have lost their votes in many places because of the perception that AIADMK has become a Gounder party after EPS took over the organisation. We are trying every way to regain those votes,” a senior AIADMK leader told DH.
Mukulathors are spread across Central and Southern regions of Tamil Nadu with significant presence in about 60 Assembly constituencies. Though Sasikala, OPS, and TTV are also not seen as leaders of the community, their forced exit from the AIADMK has upset the community members.
Palaniswami has in the past two weeks consistently spoken about Thevar, a highly polarising figure in Tamil Nadu revered by Mukulathors and denounced by Dalits, and his importance in the state’s politics. His eulogising Thevar and seeking a Bharat Ratna for him and renaming the airport after him is likely to backfire with Devendra Kula Vellalars (DKV), a sub-sect of Dalits, taking objection to his suggestions.
Mukulathors and DKVs have had a chequered history, marked by frequent clashes, including the 1957 Mudukulathur riots, triggered by the murder of DVK leader Immanuel Sekaran, in which Thevar was accused.
DVKs have been demanding that the airport be named after Sekaran since the facility came up on land originally owned by them. It was because of the demands from both communities to name the airport after their leaders that the issue was consciously pushed to the backseat – even stalwarts like M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa dealt with the issue with utmost caution.