AIADMK factions patch up; Velumani-led rebels meet Edappadi Palaniswami
SP Velumani's rebel bloc reunites with EPS after four MLAs defect to TVK, but faction co-leader CV Shanmugam skips the peace pact
The political drama in Tamil Nadu took an unexpected turn on Wednesday (May 27) as the rebel faction of the AIADMK led by former minister SP Velumani patched up with party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS).
The rebel MLAs led by Velumani met EPS at his residence and expressed their support for the party leader.
The two rival camps have sent a joint letter to Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar, announcing that they will once again function as a single, unified unit inside the state Legislative Assembly. This reunion caps off weeks of intense hostility, conflicts, and a high-stakes constitutional standoff that threatened to tear the AIADMK apart.
Why the rebellion started
The roots of this massive internal warfare trace back to the deeply fractured verdict of the May 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. Actor-turned-politician Vijay's newly launched party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), shook the state's traditional political foundations by winning 108 seats. However, because they fell just short of the 118 majority mark needed to form a government, a tense hung assembly loomed over Fort St George.
A group of 25 MLAs, co-led by Velumani and former Law Minister CV Shanmugam, revolted against EPS as the AIADMK and the DMK considered an alliance to prevent Vijay from forming the government. The AIADMK rebels argued that collaborating with the DMK was an unforgivable betrayal of the party's founding principles.
Fresh turn
What ultimately forced the rebels to surrender and return to EPS was a wave of desertions within their own ranks over the past few days. Realizing that prolonged legal battles under the anti-defection law carried an immense risk of ending their political careers, four prominent rebel legislators decided to jump ship entirely rather than wait for the Speaker's ruling.
The chain of events began when rebel MLAs Maragatham Kumaravel, P Sathyabama, and S Jayakumar officially resigned their assembly seats and formally joined the ruling TVK. The final blow landed when a fourth rebel legislator, Ambasamudram MLA Esakki Subaya, submitted his resignation to the Speaker and followed them into the TVK camp.
These rapid resignations fundamentally altered the math of the crisis. They instantly brought the AIADMK's total assembly strength down from 47 to 43, while severely bleeding the rebel camp's numbers and destroying their bargaining power. Facing complete political isolation and an imminent threat of disqualification for his remaining followers, Velumani swiftly pivoted toward reconciliation to save what was left of his faction, leading to the joint peace letter submitted to the Speaker today.