Several B teams were formed to break AIADMK: says Palaniswami

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Saturday alleged that several “B teams” were formed and many tried to “break” the AIADMK by filing cases in court, but all that has been smashed and shattered into pieces.

Without naming expelled AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam, Palaniswami, while garnering votes in North Chennai for the April 23 Assembly polls, said, “Several internal problems were created in the party and now see where they (Panneerselvam) have gone.”

“The true face (of Panneerselvam) has come out. The cat is out of the bag. After Amma’s (As Jayalalithaa is fondly called, meaning mother) demise, many tried to capture this movement intentionally. But with the help of you all and party supporters, we stopped and have proven that AIADMK is a strong movement,” he said.

“After Amma passed away (on December 5, 2016), they thought the party would break. They tried so much to break this party by creating some B teams. But, along with the support of the people and party cadres, all that has been smashed and shattered into pieces,” he said.

Stressing that the party had been started for the welfare of the poor by the late Chief Minister M G Ramachandran, Palaniswami said after his demise, the movement got split.” But Amma (Jayalalithaa) united them and fulfilled the dreams of our revolutionary leader (M G Ramachandran),” he said amid thunderous applause from the audience. The only party to have ruled Tamil Nadu for 31 years is the AIADMK and because of it, the state secured top rank among other states in India, he claimed.

Observing that the party follows democracy, he said in the DMK, it is not so, as no matter how much one toils hard for the party’s growth, they would not get any recognition. The ruling DMK’s objective was to only “loot”, he said, and asked the people whether such a party should come to power again.