COIMBATORE: Senior DMK leader and former MLA K Selvaraj on Thursday resigned from the party and announced his decision to step away from active politics, expressing deep disappointment over the sidelining of long-time party loyalists.
Addressing the media in Tirupur, Selvaraj alleged that the DMK leadership had increasingly given undue importance and influential positions to leaders who had recently joined from rival parties, while sidelining grassroots workers who had remained committed to the party for decades.
“I endured the pain silently despite receiving invitations from other political parties because I wanted to remain loyal to the party leadership. But now, with a heavy heart, I am resigning from all party posts, including my primary membership in the DMK,” he said.
Selvaraj further claimed that a prominent industrialist from Tirupur had influenced the party leadership to deny him the opportunity to contest again from the Tirupur South assembly constituency in the assembly polls.
“I was asked to contest from the Palladam constituency without prior consultation, which eventually led to my defeat. Despite repeated attempts, I was not allowed to explain the ground realities to the party leadership. If this is the situation faced by a senior functionary like me, one can imagine the plight of ordinary party workers,” he said.
He also clarified that he had no intention of joining any other political party. Selvaraj, who served as the Tirupur central district secretary of the DMK, has been associated with the party since 1976. Over the years, he held several important positions, including Municipal Chairman and Mayor, before being elected as the MLA from the Tirupur South Assembly constituency in the 2021 assembly polls.