Three AIADMK rebel MLAs tender resignation, five party legislators switch to EPS camp

Three AIADMK legislators who were part of the rebel group led by senior leaders C Ve Shanmugam and S P Velumani, met Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker J C D Prabhakar on Monday and tendered their resignation.

Three AIADMK legislators who were part of the rebel group led by senior leaders C Ve Shanmugam and S P Velumani, met Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker J C D Prabhakar on Monday and tendered their resignation. Five others from the camp went back to party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami.

The three legislators -- Maragatham Kumaravel, who won from Maduranthakam, P Sathyabama from Dharapuram, and S Jayakumar, who got elected from Perundurai Assembly constituency -- on AIADMK tickets, called on the Speaker at the Secretariat here and submitted their resignations. Dharapuram (Tiruppur) and Perundurai (Erode) are part of AIADMK's traditional stronghold, the 'kongu' region in western Tamil Nadu. Maduranthakam is located near Chennai.

Shortly thereafter, they met TVK Minister Aadhav Arjuna at his chamber. They are likely to join the Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.

The three MLAs were among the 25 legislators who voted in support of the TVK government during the May 13 floor test, defying the party diktat.

Meanwhile, the five AIADMK MLAs who had been in the Shanmugam-Velumani camp, shifted their allegiance back to party chief Palaniswami. With this, the number of Palaniswami-supporting MLAs in the Assembly has risen to 27. The legislators who left the Velumani camp included SM Sukumar (Arcot).

With three resignations and five MLAs going back to the Palaniswami camp, the strength of the rebel side has now reduced to 17, from 25.