Three rebel AIADMK legislators on Monday resigned from the Tamil Nadu Assembly, further deepening the crisis within the opposition party after a section of its MLAs backed the ruling TVK government during the recent floor test.
The legislators — Maragatham Kumaravel from Maduranthakam, Sathyabama from Dharapuram, and Jayakumar from Perundurai — met Tamil Nadu Assembly speaker J C D Prabhakar at the Secretariat and submitted their resignation letters.
The three MLAs were part of the rebel faction led by senior AIADMK leaders C Ve Shanmugam and S P Velumani.
Soon after meeting the speaker, the legislators called on TVK minister Aadhav Arjuna at his chamber, fuelling speculation that they are set to join the ruling C Joseph Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.
The three MLAs were among the 25 AIADMK legislators who had defied the party leadership and voted in support of the TVK government during the Assembly floor test, triggering a major political controversy within the party.
Rebel MLAs backed Vijay government
The three legislators were among the 25 AIADMK MLAs who voted in favour of the government during the Assembly trust vote, despite the opposition party deciding to oppose the motion.
{{/usCountry}}The three legislators were among the 25 AIADMK MLAs who voted in favour of the government during the Assembly trust vote, despite the opposition party deciding to oppose the motion.
{{/usCountry}}The floor test was held after C Joseph Vijay staked claim to form the government following the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
TVK had emerged as the single largest party in the elections but fell short of the majority mark on its own. The party later secured support from Congress, Left parties, VCK and IUML to form the government.
The backing from the rebel AIADMK legislators increased the ruling alliance’s numbers during the confidence motion.
The Vijay government won the trust vote with 144 votes in the 234-member Tamil Nadu assebmly.
Split within AIADMK
The floor test exposed divisions within the AIADMK legislature party, with one faction supporting party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and another group backing the government during the vote.
The rebel faction was led by Shanmugam and Velumani, both considered influential leaders within the party organisation.
Following the floor test, speculation intensified over possible defections from the AIADMK to the ruling TVK.
The resignation of the three legislators is the first major development after the trust vote and reduces the strength of the AIADMK in the Assembly further.
Meeting with TVK minister
After submitting their resignations, the MLAs met minister Aadhav Arjuna at the Secretariat.
Neither the rebel MLAs nor the TVK leadership officially commented on the purpose of the meeting.