VELLORE: The BJP is not going to make any dent in AIADMK by poaching 15 former MLAs, who have either retired from politics or have joined expelled leaders like O Panneerselvam or TTV Dhinakaran, claimed cadre of the Dravidian major.
Many of those have already switched over to the OPS group and AMMK, so terming them as AIADMK members itself was wrong, said an AIADMK functionary in Vellore.
Adding grist to the mill, former MLA from Avinashi AA Karuppasamy in a widely circulated video on social media denied that he joined the BJP.
“I do not know how my name was added to the list as I am still with the AIADMK and will never leave the party founded by former chief minister MGR,” he said. A simple reading of the age of those who joined the BJP would show that they have either reached retirement or semi-retirement stage, say the party workers.
They pointed out how the former minister and Valangaiman ex-MLA Gomathi Srinivasan has not been in the news as she was a minister way back in the 1980s. “She is not active in politics now and to include her name reveals that this is being done wantonly,” a highly placed source said.
The AIADMK cadre suspects that this is the BJP’s way of getting back at the party miffed over the saffron party’s Tamil Nadu ST wing general secretary Pappanna joining the AIADMK in the presence of its general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami a week ago.
“Annamalai cannot take credit for roping in these has-beens,” a senior functionary said and added, “None of the 15 will get any post in the BJP and will only be ordinary members.”