Erode East bypoll: AIADMK factions meet Annamalai at BJP office in Chennai
Jan 21, 2023
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], January 21 : Leaders of AIADMK factions led by Edappadi Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam went to BJP headquarters Kamalalayam to meet BJP state president K Annamalai and discuss the Erode East bypoll in the state.
Senior leaders of EPS camp including D Jayakumar, Thangamani, KP Munusamy, Sengotayan, Dindukkal Srinivasan, S P Velumani held talks with Annamalai.
Panneerselvam and his supporters Vaithiyalingam, JCD Prabhakhar, Manoj Pandian also held talks with BJP leaders.
Leaders of Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) faction did not talk to the media after the meeting and said "everything went well". Panneerselvam said it was courtesy meeting.
"We came to BJP headquarters and met the state president. It was a courtesy meeting and which was fruitful. We discussed in detail. I have already stated that if BJP is contesting, we will support. That stance remains," Pannerselvam said.
OPS had declared in the morning that AIADMK will contest by-election to Erode East Assembly constituency if the BJP does not contest it.
AIADMK leaders had earlier met Tamil Maanila Congress president GK Vaasan who had accepted the party's request that it will contest the bypoll.
AIADMK leaders also met Tamilaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam president John Pandiyan and Puratchi Bharatham president Poovai Jaganmoorthy seeking their support for the AIADMK party candidate.
PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss has said his party is neither contesting Erode East by-poll nor supporting any party.
Political activities have picked up pace in the state since Election Commission announced that bypoll for Erode East seat will be held on February 27. It will the first by-election in Tamil Nadu after the DMK-led alliance's victory in the 2021 assembly elections.
DMK has assigned the Erode East seat to Congress which is looking to retain the constituency, which is one of the 25 seats allotted to it in the DMK's Secular Progressive Alliance.
The by-poll has been necessitated following the death of Congress legislator from the seat.
