Expelled veteran aiadmk ka Sentotttaiyan joins tamilaz vattri kazhagam in presence of party president and actor vijay in panaiyur near chenai on 27th november 2025 photo: x/@tvkpartyhq via
LAst Week, veteran leader Ka Sengtayan who was currently with all Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (Aiadmk) joined Tamilaga vettri kazhagam (tvk) led by actor vijay in tamil nadu which is going for elections next year.
Mr. Sengottaiyan, who is a former transport and education minister, was expelled from the AIADMK about a month ago. Feeling sidelined by party general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami, he resigned as MLA of Gobichettipalayam constituency in Erode district before joining the fledgling TVK.
This move did not surprise many people. Mr. Sengottaiyan had only two options: either defect to the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) or join the TVK. He would probably find the first option unacceptable, having been trained in anti-DMK politics for years. When pandemonium broke out in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on March 25, 1989, the then Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi claimed that Mr. Sengottaiyan had hit his face and broken his glasses. On the same day, AIADMK supremo and Leader of the Opposition Jayalalithaa was attacked. When she tried to leave the meeting during the scuffle, the DMK minister held the end of her sari. In such a context, joining the TVK was the best option for Mr. Sengottaiyan, as Mr. Vijay had presented himself as a critic of the DMK since the beginning of his political career.
Although Mr. Sengottaiyan’s critics feel that the senior leader has diminished his position by joining TVK, a recent entrant to the political scene, the former minister, who has been elected to the assembly nine times since 1977, will be an asset to TVK. There is no leader in TVK who can match Mr. Sengottaiyan’s experience in politics and election management. Mr. Sengottaiyan was appointed as the chief coordinator of the TVK’s high-level administrative committee and the organizational secretary for the four western districts, traditionally known as AIADMK strongholds. By giving him charge of four districts, Mr. Vijay has signaled that, like the DMK, he will make matters difficult for the main opposition party in the elections.
The AIADMK’s woes seem to be continuing: it has lost some of its prominent second leaders to the DMK in recent months, including former MPs A. Anwhar Raajhaa and V. Maitreyan. It has been almost eight months since the AIADMK and the BJP announced a revival of their relationship, yet they have failed to attract any party with a significant following to their side. If this situation continues, it will be difficult for the combine to take the DMK-led front which has been able to keep its flock together.
When the two parties announced the restoration of their ties on April 10, their supporters predicted they would secure a 41% share of the vote. They believed that the two parties would retain their allies from the 2024 assembly elections to 2026. It is now clear that the AIADMK will not get the support of all the voters of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, which faced the electorate in April-May last year. One of the main reasons is that the Pattali Makkal Katchi, founded by S. Ramadoss in 1989, is heading for a split. Mr. Ramadoss’ year-long political rift with his son and former Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss has only deepened. The election commission’s recent decision to formally recognize Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss as party president is likely to force the founder to chart his own course.
In the BJP, former state president K. Annamalai has often made remarks that were not acceptable to either the AIADMK or Mr. Annamalai’s successor, Nainar Nagenthran, who is keen to maintain relations with the AIADMK at least until the end of the elections.
The Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK), founded by Vijayakant and now led by his wife Premalatha Vijayakant, appears to be keeping its options open despite pulling out of the alliance with the AIADMK that was formed early last year. Since the other allies are on the sidelines, adding them to the opposition ranks won’t change the outcome much.
Unless the Naam Tamilar Katchi, which has secured a vote share of about 8% in 2024, or the TVK join the opposition — which seems a remote possibility — the DMK-led coalition seems firmly in the driver’s seat.
Published – 02 Dec 2025 01:59 IST
