Anbumani’s war against dad close to home with Villupuram stir on July 20

CHENNAI: PMK president Anbumani is all set to flex his muscle in Villupuram, the stronghold of his estranged father and party founder S Ramadoss. Anbumani will lead a protest organised by the party in Villupuram on Sunday.

PMK spokesperson and Anbumani supporter K Balu stated that a protest will be held near the district collectorate. Anbumani will preside over the protest and address the cadre, he said. The protest will be conducted to condemn the State government for refusing to implement Vanniyar reservation and demand that it adopt the Vanniyar Reservation Act.

Anbumani’s decision to hold the protest in the district where Ramadoss resides in his Thailapram residence has raised eyebrows among the cadre, who view it as one more ugly turn for the father-son row. Party leaders confided that, although the protest venue was only an hour’s journey, Ramadoss, who resides in his Thailapuram house, would not participate in the protest.

“Despite Mailam (in Villupuram district) constituency MLA C Sivakumar taking Anbumani’s side, a majority of cadre in the district remain loyal to Ramadoss. If there is a huge participation in the protest, it will project as if Anbumani is gaining inroads in the district,” the leader added.

Meanwhile, an office-bearer within Anbumani's inner circle quipped that Ramadoss is running a separate party in the Villupuram district. “The protest will show the strength of Anbumani within the party. In several Anbumani’s meetings conducted in various districts, cadres participated in large numbers,” he added. This has led to speculations over a head-on collision between supporters of the two camps.