Latest news with #PattaliMakkalKatchi
Hans India
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Factional feud deepens in PMK as Anbumani Ramadoss expels MLA R Arul from party
Chennai: In a dramatic escalation of the internal feud within the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), party president Anbumani Ramadoss on Wednesday announced the expulsion of Salem West MLA R. Arul from the party's primary membership. Arul, a well-known loyalist of the PMK founder, has been removed for allegedly tarnishing the party's image through media statements. In a statement, Anbumani stated that the party's disciplinary committee had asked Arul to apologise within 24 hours for his remarks. However, as Arul failed to comply, the party invoked Rule No. 30 of its bylaws to expel him. "Salem West MLA acted in violation of party rules and brought disrepute to the organisation. His continued defiance has left us with no choice," the statement said. The expelled legislator had recently made statements to the media, expressing that his primary loyalty remained with party founder Ramadoss, while acknowledging Anbumani as his leader only after him. In a pointed message, Arul had also urged Anbumani to reconcile with his father and the founder of the PMK, publicly calling for the resolution of their differences. Arul's removal is seen as a significant move, especially given his strong influence in the Salem district, considered a bastion of PMK. The expulsion has deepened the rift between the two factions led respectively by the father-son duo, fueling concerns among party workers about a long-term split. Party insiders reveal that parallel organisational structures have already emerged in many districts due to competitive appointments made by both leaders. "There are now two presidents, two district secretaries, and two sets of office bearers in several places. Even if the top leaders reconcile, conflict will arise over who retains which post," said a district-level functionary who has remained neutral in the conflict. A senior leader admitted that the situation has created an existential crisis for the party. "The perception war between father and son is damaging. It's unclear when or if it will end. Other parties could exploit the divide, especially during elections," he said. With grassroots leaders now split and many demoralised, party insiders fear that effective election coordination will be an uphill task unless urgent reconciliation efforts are made.
The Hindu
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Anbumani accuses DMK government of failing to fulfil promises on PDS reform
Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday (June 26, 2025) condemned the ruling DMK for 'failing' to fulfil poll promises pertaining to reforms in the Public Distribution System (PDS). In a statement, he said Tamil Nadu currently has 37,328 ration shops operating under various departments, including Cooperatives and Food. This multi-departmental structure has led to disparities in work conditions, pay, and benefits for employees, he alleged. The DMK, in its manifesto for the 2021 Assembly election, had promised to bring all ration shops under a single administrative department. 'However, more than 50 months since assuming office, that promise remains unfulfilled. As a result, the hardships faced by ration shop employees continue unabated,' Dr. Anbumani said. Referring to other poll promises of the DMK with respect to reforms in the PDS, such as distributing goods in packed bundles, resuming supply of black gram, and providing an extra kilogram of sugar, Dr. Anbumani said they have been 'completely ignored'. He urged Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to immediately take steps to fulfil all the promises made by the DMK in the run-up to the 2021 Assembly poll.
The Hindu
19-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
100-day padayatra is to unseat DMK government in 2026 elections, says Anbumani Ramadoss
Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) 'president' Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday said that his 100-day padayatra is to unseat the autocratic DMK government in the 2026 Assembly elections which he alleged betrayed the people of the State and the Vanniyar community. Mr. Anbumani participated in the Salem district PMK general council meeting on Thursday. The party cadre accorded a grand welcome to their leader. Speaking at the meeting, Mr. Anbumani explained the promises made by the DMK during the election in 2021 and alleged most of the promises are not fulfilled. 'The DMK is in fear after witnessing the PMK's recent conference at Mamallapuram. The DMK fears that Vanniyars would not vote for the party in the 2026 Assembly elections. The DMK and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin betrayed PMK by promising to give 10.5% internal reservation and after four years, now Mr. Stalin is saying that reservation could be given only after the Union Government conducts caste census. Mr. Stalin again and again said this lie while States like Karnataka, Telangana, Odisha, and Bihar conducted caste surveys, and now again Karnataka has announced they are going to conduct a caste survey. While these States have the right to conduct the surveys, why does Tamil Nadu not have that power? Mr. Anbumani questioned. Mr. Anbumani said on July 25, the birthday of PMK founder S. Ramadoss, the padayatra will be launched and it will cover the entire State in 100 days. The time to unseat DMK government has come, he added. No one is happy in Tamil Nadu under DMK rule and everywhere drugs are allegedly available and there is no safety for women. The gun culture is allegedly increasing in the State. In the last 2021 elections, DMK won only one seat in the Salem district and in 2026, it will be defeated in all the seats in the district. While Ministers like Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, who is an expert in economics, are given a single portfolio, Ministers like E.V. Velu and K.N. Nehru are given multiple departments, he charged. Claiming that allegations raised against him are not true, Mr. Anbumani said that 'for the past few weeks, there has been some confusion prevailing in the party and I will give a detailed explanation for that.' Dr. Anbumani told the party cadre to pray for the speedy recovery of two PMK MLAs, G.K. Mani and R. Arul, who are hospitalized. Mettur MLA S. Sathasivam, Vanniyar Sangam secretary M. Karthi and PMK functionaries participated.
India Today
18-06-2025
- Politics
- India Today
How Ramadoss vs. Ramadoss makes PMK a divided house
This Father's Day (June 15), Pattali Makkal Katchi (Proletarian People's Party or PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss struck a rare emotional chord when he posted the following message on social media: 'Fathers are always flames of sacrifice. If creation is a mother's role, nurturing with love is the sacred duty of the father. Let us not honour fathers just on this day—but every day.' Coming amid a public and painful power struggle with his father, party founder S. Ramadoss—the most turbulent chapter in the PMK's history—the message read more like an offer of truce than just a tribute.A few hours later, addressing a general council meeting in Thiruvallur, Anbumani apologised to his father: 'If you're upset with me, please forgive me. There's nothing wrong in asking for forgiveness from a father.' The apology, though, came with a caveat—he would not step down as party president. 'As a son, it is my duty to ensure you live long with health and happiness. Ayya underwent bypass surgery 10 years ago and now deals with blood pressure and diabetes. He should not be stressed. Just give orders, and I will carry them out—as your son and as the party president,' Anbumani PMK, once a potent force rooted in Vanniyar assertion and social justice rhetoric, is now caught in an unprecedented leadership conflict. The feud between the founder and his son has not only divided the party but also exposed its decline from a grassroots movement to a dynastic, alliance-dependent out of a Vanniyar agitation for the Most Backward Classes (MBC) reservation quota, the PMK was the political culmination of the community's rise up the social ladder. Violence during the protests of 1987, which led to 21 deaths, gave S. Ramadoss immense symbolic capital, setting the stage for the PMK's formation in 1989. Over time, however, the universalist vision of social justice narrowed into a tight grip over Vanniyar identity, sacrificing broader appeal for sectarian consolidation. Through the 1990s and early 2000s, the PMK allied with the DMK and the AIADMK at different times, guided more by electoral arithmetic than ideology. It reached its peak in 2004, with Anbumani becoming Union health minister in the United Progressive Alliance government. But the party's support began to erode in the years that followed, thanks to regressive casteist positions, opposition to inter-caste marriages, and its role in the infamous 2012 Dharmapuri incident in which a Dalit youth's death and anti-Dalit violence shook Tamil 2016 bid to reposition himself as a moderniser—under the slogan 'Change. Progress. Anbumani.'—was a slick, media-savvy campaign that won attention but not trust. Yet, since becoming party president in 2022, Anbumani has steadily tightened his grip, bypassing the old guard and forging direct relationships with district-level tensions between father and son boiled over in December 2024, when S. Ramadoss named his daughter's son Mukundan as youth wing leader at a party meeting. Anbumani, visibly angry, denounced the appointment as dynastic—a striking irony given his own elevation was engineered by his April this year, the rift deepened as the founder declared himself party president, insisting that Anbumani step down and continue only as working president. Anbumani refused. Efforts at mediation by senior leaders and political intermediaries, including RSS ideologue S. Gurumurthy, failed to make headway. While his father maintained he would remain party chief 'so long as he is alive,' Anbumani pressed ahead, consolidating his base through grassroots meetings and subtle signalling of a generational the PMK's general council meeting in Kancheepuram more recently, Anbumani blamed the ruling DMK and unnamed 'conspirators within' the PMK for the ongoing unrest within his party. Without offering concrete evidence, he accused the DMK of seeking to electorally weaken the PMK by engineering internal rifts. Referring to repeated unfulfilled promises of internal reservations for the Vanniyars, he accused Chief Minister M.K. Stalin of having 'betrayed' the community. He also claimed the DMK's fear of losing Vanniyar votes after witnessing recent mobilisations had prompted renewed efforts to destabilise the Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol. Thirumavalavan, while reiterating his ideological opposition to the PMK, pointed out that it was the only non-Dalit party to add blue to its flag, erect statues of Ambedkar in the northern districts of Tamil Nadu, and include in its constitution a provision that the general secretary of the party must be a Dalit. 'It is sad that a party with roots in progressive politics is now looking to right-wing forces for mediation. In fact, movements like the PMK had played a key role in gatekeeping against the right wing in Tamil Nadu,' he the emotional overture on Father's Day, though headline-worthy, did not bridge the chasm. Even as Anbumani held meetings in Thiruvallur and Chengalpet, his father convened a parallel gathering in Thailapuram, dismissing party general secretary Vadivel Ravanan—a known Anbumani loyalist—and appointing Murali Shankar in his fact, the seeds of discord were sown even before the current crisis, during the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Anbumani was reportedly inclined towards aligning with the BJP, hoping to leverage his 'development' image and national connections. In contrast, his father was said to favour an alliance with the AIADMK, with whom he shared a longer and more traditional political rapport. The disagreement widened the rift between the with the BJP and the AIADMK now back in the same alliance ahead of the 2026 assembly election, the PMK is almost certain to join the front. But the unresolved leadership struggle raises a critical question: which Ramadoss will negotiate the terms. With the 2026 election fast approaching, the PMK risks entering the fray as a divided to India Today Magazine
India Today
16-06-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Anbumani Ramadoss blames DMK for family feud within Tamil Nadu regional party
Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) leader Anbumani Ramadoss accused the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) of being behind the ongoing turmoil in his party, calling it an attempt to destabilise PMK and weaken the Vanniyar community ahead of the 2026 remarks come amid a week-long internal power struggle between Anbumani and his father, PMK founder S Ramadoss, with the latter removing several Anbumani loyalists from key party Sunday, Anbumani, who had issued a public apology to his father on Father's Day (Sunday, June 15), turned his attention to the DMK, blaming the party for fuelling the discord. 'DMK is manipulating the media to degrade PMK and divert attention from public anger against the government,' Anbumani alleged, adding, 'The Chief Minister does not even know what's happening in the state. To deflect from that, DMK is targeting parties like ours. But these efforts will not succeed.'He claimed the DMK grew fearful after witnessing the turnout at the recent Chithirai Thiruvizha event and has since sought to weaken PMK and the Vanniyar community. 'I told the people openly that DMK betrayed the Vanniyar community. For four years, they led us to believe they would provide additional reservation. But in the end, they cheated us,' he also warned of internal betrayal, stating that some party members were working against PMK's interests by collaborating with the DMK. 'Fake news and misinformation are being spread about us on social media. There are betrayers within the party, and they will be exposed. DMK knows it cannot face us directly, so it is using others to do its work,' he further added that neither he nor his father should be held responsible for the present confusion, and that the 'real villain' was the DMK.'I can never betray my party. If that happens, it will be the last day of my life,' he added. IN THIS STORY#Tamil Nadu
