CHENNAI: Stating that the BJP is pulling the strings in the AIADMK to dismantle it, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan said the recent meeting between KA Sengottaiyan, who is facing disciplinary action within the AIADMK, and senior BJP leaders Amit Shah and Nirmala Sitharaman, concerning the internal affairs of the AIADMK, is proving his point beyond doubt.

He warned that if the AIADMK leadership continued its alliance with the BJP, the party's cadres would teach them a lesson.

"We would have appreciated it if Sengottaiyan had acted on his own and voiced support for party unity. But he is being manipulated by the BJP, which will prove detrimental to the AIADMK. His recent meeting with Shah in Delhi confirms our suspicions that the BJP is the driving force behind the unrest in the AIADMK,” Thiruma told journalists at Chennai Airport late on Tuesday.

Greeting CP Radhakrishnan on being elected Vice President, the Chidambaram MP acknowledged that they were well aware that a BJP candidate with RSS roots was likely to win. However, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) fielded retired Supreme Court judge Sudharshan Reddy, who secured 300 votes. This, Thirumavalavan said, demonstrates that the INDIA bloc remains united.

Returning to the ongoing tussle within the AIADMK, the VCK leader reiterated that the BJP had allied with the intention of appropriating the party. When he initially raised this concern, Palaniswami lashed out at him.

"The truth is that the BJP is not allowing the AIADMK to function independently and has now launched the next phase of its political manoeuvre to dismantle it. By now, AIADMK cadres must have realised this," he said and continued that even after all this, if the AIADMK continues its alliance with the BJP, the cadres will surely teach them a lesson.