CHENNAI: VCK leader and MP Thol Thirumavalavan accused AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) of helping the RSS gain a foothold in Tamil Nadu, calling it a "betrayal of the people of the State."

Speaking to the journalists in Chennai, Thiruma said he was not surprised by Union Minister L Murugan's statement that there is "nothing wrong if the AIADMK follows the RSS," as Murugan himself has roots in the right-wing organisation. "His praise for the RSS reveals not only his ideological leanings but also highlights the sad state of the AIADMK, a party born from the Dravidian movement," Thiruma said.

He recalled that the AIADMK founders, MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa, had never allowed right-wing forces to grow in the State, unlike EPS, who, he claimed, is now warmly embracing the Sangh Parivar. "It is shocking," Thiruma said. "I still consider AIADMK a Dravidian party, and I am warning them. But if they clarify that I am mistaken, I will stop commenting about them."

On Murugan's invitation to actor-politician Vijay to join the RSS, the VCK leader said, "The right-wing has observed traces of their ideology in Vijay's words and actions, which is why they extended the invitation. But I hope Vijay will act with caution."

Any political party enabling the growth of the RSS and other Hindutva forces in Tamil Nadu is committing a "grave betrayal" of the State's secular and social justice principles, he further said.