- AIADMK leader E Palaniswami slammed dissident KA Sengottaiyan, saying even God will "not forgive betrayers"
- Palaniswami had expelled him for demanding unity and revival of the party
- Palaniswami also defended renewed ties with the BJP, citing past support from the Centre
AIADMK General Secretary and Opposition Leader Edappadi K Palaniswami, popularly known as EPS, sharpened his attack today on dissident leader KA Sengottaiyan and expelled leaders O Panneerselvam, VK Sasikala and TTV Dhinakaran, accusing them of "betrayal".
Without naming senior leader and nine-time MLA Sengottaiyan, who had reiterated his demand for the AIADMK's revival after three consecutive electoral defeats, Mr Palaniswami said at a party meet in Chennai: "Some are creating problems with hirelings. We have identified them and will soon put an end to it. None can do anything to AIADMK. Self-respect is important for us more than power, we will not give up."
EPS had stripped Mr Sengottaiyan and his supporters of the party posts they held after the veteran leader set a 10-day timeline for the leadership to act on his call for unity.
Taking a harder line today, he declared: "There is no place for those who make useless talk. There is place is only for hard workers. Whoever attempts to betray the party will be left standing on the road without an address. Even God will not forgive betrayers. They will be isolated."
Mr Sengottaiyan had asked the party to forgive and re-induct leaders who had left the party, tacitly referring to expelled leaders Sasikala, OPS and TTV Dhinakaran. OPS and TTV Dhinakaran had walked out of the NDA recently.
Last week, Mr Sengottaiyan left for Delhi, saying he was on a spiritual retreat to Haridwar. His move comes at a delicate moment for EPS, who is under pressure to consolidate the party ahead of the crucial 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly elections.
Turning the heat on Mr Paneerselvam, Mr Palaniswami recalled the 2017 crisis.
"We pardoned some who betrayed us and attempted to topple our government," he said. "We made them Deputy Chief Minister, but they never reformed. They indulged in vandalism at the party headquarters. Another one took away 18 MLAs to bring down the government. Who will accept this? None can intimidate me. I have a strong mind," he said.
To criticism that he has ceded ground to the BJP and revived ties with the party after snapping them following two electoral defeats of their alliance, EPS cited a new reason.
"There is no threat from the Centre. Even in the past, they only did good for us," he said. "After (former Chief Minister and AIADMK icon) Jayalalithaa's death, some tried to hijack the party and topple the government. You know who saved us - it was the Centre. We remain grateful. The Centre granted all our demands - Chennai Metro, highways, river cleaning," he said.
With the Tamil Nadu elections due in seven months, Mr Palaniswami struck a confident note.
"The DMK will not even get deposit in the 2026 elections. People are waiting for the end of DMK rule. Alliances are made during polls to defeat our enemies. Didn't the DMK ally with BJP in the past? Today the DMK is in fear of defeat," he declared.
