Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president MK Stalin who is campaigning to become chief minister in the upcoming assembly elections in Tamil Nadu faced an open rebellion from his estranged elder brother and expelled DMK leader MK Alagiri on Sunday.
“There are posters hailing you as the future chief minister but you can never become chief minister. My associates and supporters will never let you become one,” Alagiri said addressing a meeting with his supporters in Madurai district on Sunday.
Alagiri held the meeting to mull his political entry into the assembly polls which is likely to be held in April or May. One of Alagiri’s loyalists who attended the meeting on condition of anonymity said that they were expecting the DMK to induct him back into the party. “If they don’t take annan (brother Alagiri) back, we won’t let Stalin become chief minister,” the Alagiri loyalist who attended the meeting said.
Alagiri escalated a prolonged sibling rivalry even as he said that he didn’t wish to become chief minister. He accused Stalin of betraying him and said that their father and DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi was planning to take him back into the party before he fell ill.
Alagiri also said that he would soon announce his decision on starting a party. “Whether it is good or bad, you (supporters) must accept it.” Thousands of people from Madurai, Theni and Nellai had gathered in the streets of Madurai and waited inside a jam-packed hall to welcome Alagiri who arrived in a campaign vehicle. His supporters egged him on to start a new political party. Posters and banners were lined up with photos of Alagiri and Karunanidhi.
{{/usCountry}}Alagiri also said that he would soon announce his decision on starting a party. “Whether it is good or bad, you (supporters) must accept it.” Thousands of people from Madurai, Theni and Nellai had gathered in the streets of Madurai and waited inside a jam-packed hall to welcome Alagiri who arrived in a campaign vehicle. His supporters egged him on to start a new political party. Posters and banners were lined up with photos of Alagiri and Karunanidhi.
{{/usCountry}}Alagiri, a former Union minister, was once the party’s organising secretary of Tamil Nadu’s southern districts and Madurai was his bastion. In 2014, Karunanidhi expelled him for violating party discipline. Alagiri has maintained a low profile since then except for when he took out a rally in Chennai to Karunanidhi’s mausoleum following his death in 2018. Alagiri said that some people had forced Karunanidhi to expel him.
Alagiri also added that following the Thirumangalam assembly by-election in 2009, he supported Stalin to become the party’s “everything” and “chief minister” after their father. “I told Stalin that we will work for his victory,” Alagiri said. “His (Stalin) conscious knows this but I don’t know why he betrayed me.” He said that he accepted Stalin’s elevation as deputy chief minister and treasurer of the party when Karunanidhi had sought his permission.
Through his speech he lamented that he worked hard for DMK’s victory in several places and made a mark in Madurai without wishing for a party post. “Did I betray the party?” Alagiri said. “What mistake did I make?”
In December, Alagiri had said that the upcoming polls will see his participation either by way of floating a party or lending his support or simply voting. Though the DMK leadership is closely following the developments, they have remained silent. A day earlier, a senior DMK leader on condition of anonymity said that even if Alagiri starts a party it won’t impact them. “He has supporters and friends but not cadre,” the leader said.