Twin blows for AIADMK: Sasikala floats new party, O Panneerselvam joins DMK

The internal churn comes days after Jayalalithaa’s close aide V K Sasikala announced the launch of a new political party and unveiled its flag, declaring her intention to contest the upcoming elections.

Soon after, the AIADMK suffered another blow when former chief minister O Panneerselvam (OPS), long regarded as Jayalalithaa’s trusted lieutenant, formally joined the rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).

Launching a sharp attack on EPS, Panneerselvam accused him of being “arrogant and autocratic,” while praising DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin for what he described as good governance, inclusive leadership, and welfare schemes benefiting all sections of society, particularly women.

OPS’s criticism carries political weight, given that Jayalalithaa had twice appointed him as interim chief minister during her disqualification in corruption cases and again after her death in 2016.

Sasikala has also intensified her offensive against EPS, branding him a “betrayer.” Ironically, it was Sasikala who had played a key role in elevating EPS to the chief minister’s post after Jayalalithaa’s demise, replacing OPS.

However, while Sasikala was serving a prison sentence, EPS and OPS forged an uneasy alliance, establishing a dual leadership arrangement in both the government and the party.

That truce collapsed following the 2021 Assembly elections, the AIADMK’s third consecutive defeat, after which EPS expelled OPS and consolidated his authority by assuming the post of party general secretary.

The exits of Sasikala, OPS, and T T V Dhinakaran, all influential leaders from the Thevar community, are widely seen as having weakened the party’s traditional base in southern Tamil Nadu.

While EPS is reportedly open to the possibility of Dhinakaran returning to the NDA fold, he has shown little interest in readmitting either Sasikala or OPS, both of whom are viewed as potential challengers to his leadership.

The AIADMK leadership, however, has sought to play down the impact of Panneerselvam’s defection. Party MP C Ve Shanmugam dismissed it as inconsequential, remarking that OPS’s exit was “like Diwali, an occasion to celebrate.”

With the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections approaching, the intensifying power struggle within the AIADMK could prove decisive. A setback for EPS may not only weaken his grip on the party but also accelerate fragmentation, potentially creating greater political space for its ally, the BJP, and reshaping the state’s electoral landscape.