AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami (left) and AMMK leader T T V Dhinakaran.
Credit: PTI Photo
Chennai: In signs of a thaw in relations after a bitter split, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami has withdrawn a petition filed by him against T T V Dhinakaran for using the party’s black and white flag and J Jayalalithaa’s photo in the flag of the latter’s Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK).
After Palaniswami’s counsel informed the decision to withdraw the case filed in 2019, the City Civil Court, Chennai, dismissed the petition on Wednesday. The prayer was to restrain Dhinakaran from using black, white, and red colours with Jayalalithaa’s photo, mimicking the AIADMK’s official flag.
The development comes just days after the AIADMK formally joined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Tamil Nadu in which AMMK and O Panneerselvam are already part of. This is also a clear hint that Palaniswami was not averse to having Dhinakaran’s AMMK as part of the NDA as long as the rebel leader doesn’t stake claim for the AIADMK.
Dhinakaran, the nephew of V K Sasikala, also expressed happiness at the AIADMK and BJP coming together to “defeat the common enemy” DMK in the 2026 polls.
Dhinakaran, who was appointed deputy general secretary of AIADMK by the then interim general secretary Sasikala before she left for Bengaluru to serve a four-year jail term in a DA case in February 2017, was expelled from the party by Palaniswami and Panneerselvam in September 2017.
Months later, Dhinakaran launched the AMMK and contested the 2019 elections by polling nearly 6 per cent votes but it came down to 2.5 per cent in 2021 prompting him to join the NDA for the 2024 polls.
The inclusion of Dhinakaran and Panneerselvam in NDA resulted in the consolidation of the votes of Mukulathor – an umbrella term used to denote to three dominant communities of Agamudaiyar, Kallar, and Maravar – towards the alliance, pushing the AIADMK to the third spot in many constituencies in South Tamil Nadu.
Mukulathors or Thevars, who had traditionally been with the AIADMK, were upset with Palaniswami systemically expelling all community leaders from the party. The BJP had in 2021 pushed for the inclusion of AMMK into the alliance, but Palaniswami resisted it forcing Dhinakaran to go solo.
With Dhinakaran and Panneerselvam in NDA’s fold, the BJP feels it will help the alliance get the support of Mukulathors who are spread across Central and South Tamil Nadu.