AIADMK functionaries wait outside the residence of party MLA K.A. Sengottaiyan at Kullampalayam in Gobichettipalayam, Erode district, on Wednesday
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Dismissing reports of holding “consultative meetings” with supporters, Gobichettipalayam AIADMK MLA K.A. Sengottaiyan clarified that party functionaries visited his residence only to invite him to public meetings planned on the occasion of former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran’s 108th birth anniversary.
In a brief interaction with mediapersons outside his residence at Kullampalayam, Mr. Sengottaiyan said party functionaries wanted to invite him to meetings being organised in Gobichettipalayam and Anthiyur on Wednesday (February 12, 2025) and Thursday (February 13).
The celebration did not take place on January 17 as the model code of conduct (MCC) was in place due to the Erode (East) Assembly bypoll.
“It was not a consultative meeting,” Mr. Sengottaiyan emphasised, adding that he gets 100 to 200 visitors every day. The former AIADMK Minister is now the secretary of the party’s unit in Erode Suburban (West).
Mr. Sengottaiyan’s absence at a felicitation ceremony organised for implementing the Avinashi-Athikadavu project, which was attended by AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami, at Annur in Coimbatore district on February 10, had sparked rumours of infighting. He had also not participated in the virtual inauguration of the AIADMK’s office in Delhi, conducted in Chennai.
The AIADMK MLA had clarified that he did not “boycott” the felicitation ceremony but “chose not to participate” because the invitation and banners did not feature the pictures of former Chief Ministers M.G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa. Police personnel were deployed for security outside his residence on Tuesday night owing to the controversy.
On Wednesday, the Madras High Court lifted its stay on the Election Commission of India’s proceedings concerning the party’s leadership dispute. Following the verdict, several functionaries arrived at Mr. Sengottaiyan’s residence while he was away. Soon, reports began circulating that the former Minister planned a meeting with his supporters, prompting him to issue the clarification.
Published – February 12, 2025 03:36 pm IST
