The two warring groups of the AIADMK on Thursday traded corruption charges, in a setback to possibility of their merger.

Rajya Sabha member V. Maitreyan, the first person to join former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam's camp, accused the government of Chief Minister K. Palaniswami of being corrupt.

Maitreyan also said supporting the Palaniswami government was an injustice meted out to the people of Tamil Nadu.

Queried about Maitreyan's comments against the government, Panneerselvam told reporters that it would be right if he had said that.

Reacting to the charges, state Law Minister C.V. Shanmugam said Panneerselvam has no right to speak about the government.

Shanmugam said the former Chief Minister should also explain his links with mining baron Sekhar Reddy.

Reddy is under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate.

Following the death of former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, the AIADMK had split into different factions.

One faction is led by Panneerselvam, who rebelled against the leadership of V.K. Sasikala. The other two factions are led by Palaniswami and Sasikala.

Adding further confusion to the ongoing crisis in the party was TTV Dhinakaran who announced a few days back that he will be returning to active politics. 

The AIADMK Deputy General Secretary had recently met his aunt and party chief VK Sasikala who is lodged in Bengaluru Central Jail. 

Dhinkaran claimed that he had the support of 122 MLAs of the party. 

Immediately after his announcement, the faction led by Edappadi Palaniswami called for a meeting at the AIADMK headquarters with top ministers.

Following discussions, Finance Minster D Jayakumar stated that Edappadi Palaniswami will remain the leader of both the party and the government.