AIADMK co-coordinator and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Sunday alleged that the Dr. Radhakrishnan Nagar byelection result bore testimony to a secret pact between the DMK and T.T.V. Dhinakaran and it should not be seen as a setback for the AIADMK.
In a joint statement, the two leaders said the outcome could not be taken as a reflection of what the entire Tamil Nadu thought [of the AIADMK and the government]. “The result won’t be applicable to any other Assembly constituency,” they said.
They noted the DMK had faced one of its worst defeat in history and people were surprised why it could not garner its basic vote share.
The DMK wanted to bring down the AIADMK and the ‘two leaves’ symbol. To achieve this, it had joined hands with Mr. Dhinakaran and diverted its vote share to him, the statement claimed.
Mr. Palaniswami and Mr. Panneerselvam noted that Mr. Dhinakaran’s statement that he would defeat the ‘two leaves’ symbol and make the AIADMK lose its deposit was an outcome of his secret agreement with the DMK.
They accused Mr. Dhinakaran of betraying the party and recalled that he was thrown out of Poes Garden and suspended from the party by Jayalalithaa.
Mr. Palaniswami and Mr. Panneerselvam also criticised Mr. Dhinakaran for hailing the acquittal of DMK leaders in the 2G spectrum allocation case and accused him of distributing money to voters.
No one could split or shake the AIADMK, which has over 1.5 crore cadres, they added.
