In yet another setback to AIADMK General Secretary Edapaddi K Palaniswami, Tamil Nadu Speaker JCD Prabhakar on Tuesday dismissed the motion seeking disqualification of 21 party MLAs who voted for Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay during the May 13 trust vote.
For the uninitiated, at least 25 AIADMK MLAs of the camp led by “rebel” leaders Shanmugam and SP Velumani had voted in favour of the Vijay-led TVK, taking its eventual tally in the Assembly from 119 to 144, ensuring a comfortable majority for the actor-turned-politician.
On the other hand, the remaining 22 MLAs loyal to E Palaniswami voted against Vijay, confirming an open split within the party folds.
The development significantly weakened Palaniswami’s position, leaving only 22 MLAs firmly in his camp. However, despite the rebellion, the dissident legislators did not have enough numbers to formally merge with TVK under the anti-defection law, which required the support of at least two-thirds of a legislature party.
In AIADMK’s case, that threshold stood at 31 MLAs, leaving the rebel group short of the required strength.
Following that, rival party factions approached Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar, each seeking the disqualification of the other’s MLAs under the anti-defection law.
Notably, four of the 25 MLAs who had voted for TVK during the confidence motion formally joined the Vijay-led party just days ago.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
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Published By:
Karishma Saurabh Kalita
Published On:
Jun 9, 2026 13:24 IST
