Over 25 AIADMK MLAs moved to Puducherry resort as Tamil Nadu govt formation hangs

The AIADMK shifted over 25 MLAs to a Puducherry resort amid uncertainty over government formation in Tamil Nadu. The move came amid poaching fears, hectic parleys by parties, including TVK, and a fluid numbers game around the 118-seat majority mark.

In Short

• AIADMK leader CV Shanmugam booked 20+ resort rooms till Thursday
• Move comes amid reports of some AIADMK MLAs open to backing Vijay's TVK
• TVK holding hectic parleys with DMK allies amid uncertainty over govt formation

Resort politics gripped Tamil Nadu, with over 25 AIADMK MLAs being shifted to a prominent resort in neighbouring Puducherry on Wednesday night. This came amidst fast-paced developments in a post-poll Tamil Nadu where denatant actor-politician Vijay's TVK is attempting to clobber together a majority after emerging as the single-largest party in the recent elections.

Sources said senior AIADMK leader CV Shanmugam, a Rajya Sabha MP who is fast emerging as a rival to party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami, has booked more than 20 rooms at The Shore Trishvam, with arrangements currently in place till Sunday or Monday. The MLAs have been split across Hotel The Shore Trishvam as part of the accommodation plan.

Interestingly, all the MLAs camped at the Puducherry resort are believed to be part of a Shanmugam-led AIADMK faction that wants to back Vijay in forming a government in Tamil Nadu.

Sources said the AIADMK MLAs allegedly accommodated at the resort so far include Balakrishna Reddy (Hosur), actor Jayasudha (Arani), AP Jayasankaran (Athur), SM Sukumar (Arcot), OS Manian (Vedaranyam), Velu (Chengam), S Jayakumar (Perundurai), Karuppannan (Bhavani), former minister Vijayabaskar (Viralimalai), S Sekhar (Paramathi-Velur).

Other names include: Venkatachalam (Mettur), Maragatham (Madurantakam), Rajasekhar (Cheyyur), Ramachandran (Keezhpennathur), Mani (Omalur), Palaniswamy (Thirukovilur), Mohan (Panrutti), Rajendran (Neyveli) and Thalavai N Sundaram (Kanyakumari).

The development came amid reports of internal churn within the AIADMK, with a section of MLAs said to be open to backing Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which emerged as the single largest party with 108 seats, but remains short of the 118-mark needed to form the government.

Adding to the intrigue, the DMK is learnt to have opened backchannel talks with its long-time rival AIADMK, an unusual development in Tamil Nadu politics. While AIADMK sources confirmed discussions, there is no clarity yet on any potential alliance. The numbers remain tight, with DMK holding 59 seats and AIADMK 47, making any tie-up significant.

Earlier in the day, Vijay met Governor Rajendra Arlekar to stake claim, but was asked to return with proof of support from 118 MLAs. Sources said he currently has backing from 112 legislators, including support from the Congress (which has five MLAs), but still fell short of numbers. The TVK later put talks with AIADMK on hold after sealing its alliance with Congress, but hectic parleys continue with other parties.

Smaller parties like the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), an ally of the DMK, remain crucial, but the party has cancelled its scheduled meeting on Thursday, adding to the uncertainty. The Left parties – also allies of the DMK – will take a call on Friday on whether they will back the TVK for government formation.

Meanwhile, TVK has also moved its own MLAs to resorts in Mamallapuram to keep them together, underlining the high-stakes nature of the political tussle.

With MLAs being herded into resorts, backchannel talks underway and numbers still fluid, Tamil Nadu’s government formation remains wide open, with all sides scrambling to secure the magic figure.

- Ends