Stating that the AIADMK was a party of the masses and a fortress built with the strong cadre base, its general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Saturday said that no force could destabilise it.
“Numerous attempts were made to destroy, divide, and break the party on many occasions. They could not succeed. But the persons who made frantic efforts to destroy the party have vanished and had to bite the dust,” Mr. Palaniswami said. He was addressing a public meeting here to seek votes for his party’s Chidambaram Lok Sabha constituency candidate M. Chandrahassan.
Mr. Palaniswami’s comments came a day after BJP State president K. Annamalai said the AIADMK would vanish after the Lok Sabha elections. Without naming him directly, the Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly said the AIADMK was a party run by its cadres and not just leaders. The party that ruled the State for 30 years had seen many struggles and troubles. But it had withstood all of them. The AIADMK would score a massive victory in the election and the results on June 4 would reveal which party would vanish. “Some people are issuing wild threats. The AIADMK cannot be threatened. The cadres and the voters will teach them a lesson,” Mr. Palaniswamy said.
Slams Stalin
Launching a scathing attack on Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, the AIADMK leader said the DMK government had done nothing in the last three years to claim credit. Law and order had collapsed in the State. There was no safety for women. The crime rate against women and children had gone up. Ganja and drugs were freely available. The government, which was supposed to crack down on those selling drugs, was soft pedalling the issue.
In 2019, Mr. Stalin said that Congress president Rahul Gandhi would become the Prime Minister. But the Congress could not even become the principal Opposition party. Mr. Stalin was repeating the claim now. The INDIA bloc had become weak as some of its important constituents had walked out of the alliance. It would not achieve a turnaround in the elections. The claim of Mr. Stalin would remain a day dream, he said.
Unlike the DMK, the AIADMK did not depend on the alliance strength. It won 37 seats in 2014 elections and captured power in 2016 Assembly elections on its own strength. His party would repeat the performance this time too, he said.
Later, he campaigned in support of his party candidate in Perambalur Lok Sabha constituency N.D. Chandramohan at Perambalur-Thuraiyur Road junction.
