We don’t carry other party’s flags, AIADMK MLA Sellur K Raju rebuts charges

CHENNAI: Madurai West MLA Sellur K Raju on Saturday asserted that the AIADMK is in no way inferior to any other political party and it doesn’t need to carry the flags of other parties, in an obvious response to criticisms that party chief Edappadi Palaniswami had organised his own cadre to carry TVK’s flags at party rallies to attract Vijay towards his alliance.

Speaking to reporters in Madurai, Raju hit out at AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran, saying that he was speaking out of frustration as he was unable to return to the AIADMK fold. Sellur Raju added that AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami had already ruled out any possibility of an alliance with the AMMK.

Refuting Dhinakaran’s claim that the AIADMK chief had organised party men to wave the TVK flag at his rally in Erode, Raju said the person concerned was indeed a member of Vijay’s party and had shown his party membership card too. He added that several TVK supporters attended the AIADMK rally on their own after Palaniswami had expressed support for TVK founder Vijay following the Karur stampede tragedy.

Responding to Dhinakaran’s remarks that the AIADMK was weakening, Raju said the AMMK leader had become politically irrelevant. On alliances, Raju said, “If relations go cordial, we will be a shoulder to support. If they turn against us, we will stamp them down and move ahead.”