As dissatisfaction with Edappadi Palaniswami’s leadership in the AIADMK has once again intensified, it has been reported that the factions led by S.P. Velumani and C.V. Shanmugam held discussions for more than four hours yesterday and took key decisions. Sources close to them say they have decided that they will not work together with Edappadi Palaniswami, and at the same time, they will not leave the AIADMK either.
It is said that the Velumani and C.V. Shanmugam factions have expressed anguish, saying they did not sweat for years to build up the party only to hand it over to Edappadi Palaniswami and walk away. Reports have emerged that they believe the AIADMK is not an organization for any one individual, but a movement built over many years through the hard work of senior leaders and party workers.
The camp of these two leaders, which points out that they also played a major role in bringing Edappadi Palaniswami to the post of general secretary, is said to have expressed dissatisfaction that they are now being removed from party responsibilities and that importance is being given only to those who support the leadership. It is also said that they have criticized the fact that more importance in the party is being given to those who speak in support of Edappadi Palaniswami rather than to those close to them.
Moreover, it is said that the Velumani-C.V. Shanmugam faction has indirectly criticized Edappadi Palaniswami for using the party’s name and structure solely to safeguard his own political future. However, their current decision appears to be not to turn this into an open leadership contest immediately, but to continue their political stance from within the AIADMK itself.
The background to this conflict had already taken shape a few months earlier. The differences that arose within the AIADMK after the 2026 Assembly election turned into an open clash following the confidence vote held in May.
In the confidence vote on the Tamil Nadu victory party government, while the AIADMK faction led by Edappadi Palaniswami voted against the government, 25 AIADMK MLAs from the S.P. Velumani - C.V. Shanmugam camp voted in support of the government. Following this, the conflict between the two sides reached its peak.
As a continuation of this, party posts held by S.P. Velumani, C.V. Shanmugam, and others were stripped away. At the same time, the Velumani faction submitted petitions to the Speaker seeking disqualification action against AIADMK MLAs including Edappadi Palaniswami, while the Edappadi faction submitted petitions against MLAs belonging to the Velumani camp.
As this conflict continued, on May 27, the Velumani faction met Edappadi Palaniswami. Both sides withdrew the disqualification petitions they had filed against each other.
Following this, it was believed that the conflict within the AIADMK had come to an end. At that time, S.P. Velumani had stated that there was no split in the AIADMK, only a difference of opinion.
However, it is said that fundamental differences of opinion persisted even after that compromise. In particular, it is said that differences of opinion continued between the Velumani-C.V. Shanmugam faction and Edappadi Palaniswami on various issues, including the party’s election strategy, alliance decisions, responsibility for electoral defeat, and the way the party is run.
C.V. Shanmugam’s recent criticisms have gained significance. He has been openly criticizing Edappadi Palaniswami’s leadership over the AIADMK’s successive election defeats, decline in vote share, and alliance-related decisions. In particular, his remark that many of the constituencies won by the AIADMK were secured with the support of alliance parties caused a major stir within the party. Both Velumani and C.V. Shanmugam have been important figures in Edappadi Palaniswami’s political journey. When the single-leadership issue in the AIADMK intensified in 2022, Edappadi Palaniswami was elected interim general secretary. During that period, Velumani was given an important party post, and C.V. Shanmugam was assigned key organizational responsibilities.
When Edappadi Palaniswami went to Delhi to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Velumani and C.V. Shanmugam had accompanied him. At that time, both were seen as key pillars of Edappadi’s leadership.
In such a situation, the fact that both have now taken a stand that they will not work together with Edappadi Palaniswami is being seen as reflecting the political shift taking place within the AIADMK.
Meanwhile, it is said that the Velumani-C.V. Shanmugam faction believes Edappadi Palaniswami is not fully expelling them from the party only because they are MLAs. Reports say they have also strongly stated that if they did not hold MLA posts, he would have removed them from the party long ago.
On the other hand, the fact that some MLAs from the Velumani camp returned to the Edappadi faction also gained political significance. As a result, the number of members from the Velumani - C.V. Shanmugam camp in the Legislative Assembly decreased. Because of this, it is said that instead of creating a separate political front against Edappadi Palaniswami, the current approach has become to create political pressure from within the party itself.
Remaining within the party, not starting a separate party, and at the same time not working in coordination with Edappadi Palaniswami is being seen as an attempt to create a new power center within the AIADMK.
In this situation, key questions have emerged in AIADMK politics: whether a general council meeting will be held next, whether the election defeat and the party’s future will be discussed there, and whether the Velumani - C.V. Shanmugam faction will coordinate their supporting MLAs and senior functionaries.
On one hand, Edappadi Palaniswami is in a position to retain the authority of the general secretary; on the other hand, the stance taken by the Velumani - C.V. Shanmugam faction—that they will operate from within the party without working alongside him—shows that the conflict within AIADMK has not come to an end.
Although the clash that openly erupted in May had been temporarily eased through negotiations, it has now resurfaced in a different form. In the AIADMK led by Edappadi Palaniswami, the Velumani-C.V. Shanmugam chapter has not come to an end; rather, it has reached a stage where a new political equation is being formed from within the party itself.