Latest news with #UdanpirappeVaa
Time of India
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Stalin orders Madurai zonal chiefs to quit amid property tax scam
Madurai: In a political purge within the DMK's Madurai unit, chief minister M K Stalin ordered all five zonal chairpersons of the Madurai corporation to resign from their posts. The move followed the recent expulsion of the mayor's husband from the party and came amid the recent property tax scam. The zonal chairpersons are Vasuki Sasikumar (Madurai East), Saravana Bhuvaneshwari (Madurai North), Pandi Selvi (Madurai Central), Mugesh Sharma (Madurai South), and V Suvitha (Madurai West). Highly placed sources from DMK said the directive was issued during Stalin's ongoing 'Udanpirappe Vaa' one-on-one outreach with party functionaries, where he warned that positions would be withdrawn wherever necessary, without leniency. The discontent simmered for months, especially after a controversial corporation council meeting in May. The council meeting, which coincided with a consultative meeting chaired by commercial taxes minister P Moorthy, ahead of DMK's general council meeting, was held without quorum. Of the 100 councillors, only 25 were present initially. With the support of AIADMK councillors, quorum was managed, and resolutions were passed — an unusual move that triggered concerns within DMK ranks. In the lead-up to the party's general council meeting in Madurai on May 29, the party suspended mayor Indrani Ponvasanth's husband, Vasanth. A directive from DMK general secretary Durai Murugan cited that Vasanth acted against party interests. Sources said he insisted on conducting the corporation meeting despite internal opposition, creating a rift in the local leadership. Adding to the controversy, a property tax scam rocked the city corporation. A 10-month probe by the central crime branch of Madurai city police uncovered large-scale irregularities in the property tax assessment process by changing the data in the Urban Tree Information System (UTIS). At least five temporary revenue staff were arrested for allegedly reducing property tax for more than 150 buildings, causing financial loss to the Madurai corporation. Official sources confirmed that the role of zonal chairpersons was also under scrutiny. Intelligence reports sent to the DMK leadership reportedly allege that several zone heads may have colluded with local bill collectors in the scam. According to party sources, minister of municipal administration K N Nehru, commercial taxes minister P Moorthy, and IT minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan met all the zonal chairpersons recently and held discussions in Madurai on Monday. "We met the mayor and the chairpersons to review and speed up civic works ahead of the elections, not for any internal party matter. The party high command will make decisions regarding resignations, Nehru informed TOI. However, a highly placed party source, on condition of anonymity, said that the party leadership is also unhappy with the functioning of the mayor, and she may not continue in the post for long. When contacted, Vasuki Sasikumar said she had not received any official intimation about her resignation. "If I receive a directive, I will respond accordingly," she told TOI. However, DMK sources said all five zonal chairpersons have to resign, and communication in this regard might not have reached them. The other four zonal chairpersons were unavailable for comment.
New Indian Express
07-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Oraniyil Tamil Nadu: DMK campaign to feel the pulse of voters
CHENNAI: DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin has been keenly tracking the progress of the 'Oraniyil Tamil Nadu' campaign, making random video calls to functionaries in the field for updates and seeking explanations, wherever necessary, from party functionaries of each Assembly constituency attending the 'Udanpirappe Vaa' one-on-one meetings. 'Stalin receives up-to-date status reports every day detailing the performance of each union, district and functionaries both those excelling and those lagging. He uses these reports during his one-on-one meetings with constituency-wise functionaries,' said a source. Under 'Oraniyil Tamil Nadu', the party has plans to reach approximately 2 crore households in 45 days. A team of party cadre along with a digital agent, a youth and a woman will visit every house within their respective polling booths across the state's 68,000 booths. The party functionaries carry a questionnaire leaflet containing six 'Yes-or-No' questions. They are read aloud to members of each household and the appropriate boxes are ticked based on the response. While the leaflet includes a question asking whether the respondent wished to join the 'Oraniyil Tamil Nadu' campaign, answering 'Yes' to this does not mean they would automatically be enrolled as a party member.
New Indian Express
25-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Two-crore target: CM Stalin set to launch DMK's membership drive on July 1
CHENNAI: DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin is set to launch the party's membership drive, Oraniyil Tamil Nadu, on July 1, with an ambitious target of enrolling 2 crore members, as per Finance Minister and senior party leader Thangam Thennarasu. According to sources, once launched, the membership drive is expected to continue for about five to six weeks. Elaborating on the exercise, Thennarasu while addressing newspersons at the party's headquarters Anna Arivalayam on Tuesday said, 'On July 2, the day after the launch, district secretaries, ministers, MPs, and MLAs will hold rallies across all districts to inaugurate the membership enrolment camps.' 'On July 3, the party's booth-level agents, digital agents, and cadre from the youth and women's wings, along with branch functionaries, will begin visiting every household under their respective booths and spend 10 minutes at each house explaining the government's achievements and importance of the party's ideologies in protecting Tamil language, soil and dignity,' he explained. Members can be enrolled both digitally through a mobile application and manually through membership forms. Sources further said a detailed road map for implementation of Oraniyil Tamil Nadu and Udanpirappe Vaa has been crafted and is being overseen by the Populus Empowerment Network (PEN), which is handling the ruling party's campaign strategies.
Hans India
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
DMK to commence membership drive on June 20
Chennai: The ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) will begin its state-wide membership drive on June 20, as part of a major organisational initiative ahead of the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. Chief Minister and DMK president M.K. Stalin will personally meet party functionaries from all 234 Assembly constituencies as part of the programme titled 'Udanpirappe Vaa'. The initiative was announced by DMK organisation secretary R.S. Bharathi, who confirmed that Stalin plans to complete these constituency-level interactions before the party's annual Mupperum Vizha celebrations scheduled for September 17. Under this programme, Stalin will interact directly with grassroots-level party workers -- excluding district secretaries, whom he will meet separately. The meetings are being held at the party headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, in Chennai. The first session took place on Friday, where Stalin met functionaries from Chidambaram, Villupuram, and Usilampatti constituencies. Sharing a message on X, Stalin wrote, 'To reach out to the people with the achievements of the government, to defeat those who are desperate to bring down Tamil Nadu, and to boost the party's robust structure -- Udanpirappe Vaa.' The Chief Minister is being accompanied during these interactions by a panel that includes R.S. Bharathi, party spokesperson T.K.S. Elangovan, joint organisation secretary Anbagam Kalai, and deputy organisation secretaries S. Austin and Thayagam Kavi. Each meeting was originally planned to last five minutes, but several interactions were extended as Stalin engaged actively with the cadre. According to party sources, Stalin came prepared with detailed performance reports of each functionary, which formed the basis for his questions and discussions. He also sought suggestions and feedback to strengthen preparations for the 2026 Assembly polls. In a notable gesture, each participant received a signed copy of Stalin's autobiography 'Ungalil Oruvan' during the meeting. An 'opinion box' has been placed at the venue to collect written feedback from those who wish to share ideas or concerns they were unable to voice during the meeting. 'We will carefully review all the inputs we receive,' Bharathi said. Stalin also reportedly enquired about the level of coordination between local functionaries and district secretaries, indicating a focus on improving intra-party communication. The next round of meetings will resume on June 17. Stalin is expected to be in Thanjavur on June 15 and 16 for official engagements. The DMK president has already urged party cadres to intensify efforts at the grassroots level and ensure that the INDIA bloc secures at least 200 of the 234 Assembly seats in the next state elections.
New Indian Express
14-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
CM Stalin meets DMK workers; membership drive to begin on June 20
CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin has planned to complete one-on-one meetings with party functionaries from all 234 Assembly constituencies ahead of this year's Mupperum Vizha, scheduled for September 17, said DMK organisation secretary RS Bharathi, who also informed that the party's membership drive will begin on June 20. On the first day of the party initiative titled 'Udanpirappe Vaa', Stalin interacted with functionaries from Chidambaram, Villupuram, and Usilampatti constituencies at Anna Arivalayam on Friday. The meetings, which began at 10.30 am, lasted for about three hours. In a post on X, Stalin wrote, 'To reach out to the people with the achievements of the government, to defeat those who are desperate to bring down Tamil Nadu, and to boost the party's robust structure - Udanpirappe Vaa.' District secretaries were not part of these sessions. Instead, Stalin met them separately. The panel accompanying the CM during the interactions included RS Bharathi, spokesperson TKS Elangovan, joint organisation secretary Anbagam Kalai, and deputy organisation secretaries S Austin and Thayagam Kavi.
