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The teams set up by the ruling AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) to prepare for by-elections to 20 Tamil Nadu Assembly constituencies have begun work, said O Panneerselvam, party coordinator and Deputy Chief Minister on Monday.
He rejected reports that Chief Minister K Palaniswami had asked the party workers to focus on winning eight of the 20 seats, which fell vacant due to the disqualification of 18 sitting MLAs and the demise of two others.
The Chief Minister had not spoken of winning “four or eight seats which is your guesswork,” he told reporters here.
The party has recently set up teams to oversee the preparations for the by-elections, expected to be notified anytime, with the Madras High Court recently vacating its stay on notifying the 18 vacancies while upholding disqualification of MLAs loyal to ousted leader TTV Dhinakaran.
Reports said that the AIADMK was keen on winning eight seats to ensure the stability of its government after the by-polls.
Panneerselvam said, Palaniswami at a meeting held on November 3 at the AIADMK headquarters had spoken of winning all the 20 seats and had urged the office-bearers to work towards it.
Preparatory poll work
“The preparatory poll work is being carried out by the by-election teams, and in-charges. The AIADMK’s victory symbol Two-Leaves will emerge triumphant for sure,” he told reporters.
Screening electoral rolls, and interacting with local community leaders and opinion makers are among the tasks that form part of the preparatory poll work by the parties.
On the claim by Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar that DMK chief MK Stalin and Dhinakaran, founder of the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam, had been meeting secretly, Panneerselvam said there had been ‘information’, indicating it.
“We are continuously getting information that Stalin and Dhinakaran have secretly met and held discussions several times,” the deputy Chief Minister said.
Invitation to return
On the lukewarm response to the invitation asking 18 MLAs — who had left the party — to return, he said it was AIADMK’s ‘generosity’ to welcome them back and it was for them to accept it or not.
Days after the high court on October 25 upheld the disqualification of 18 AIADMK rebel MLAs, the ruling party had said they and others who backed Dhinakaran were welcome to return to the parent party.
On forging alliance for Lok Sabha poll, Panneerselvam said it will be considered at the time of election with like-minded parties.
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