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In a major setback for the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), four former ministers joined the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), on Thursday, July 2, along with several former legislators, district-level functionaries and party workers.
The leaders — C Vijayabaskar, MR Vijayabaskar, MSM Anandan and S Valarmathi — were inducted into the party at a private resort in Mamallapuram in the presence of TVK general secretary and Minister N Anand, and Ministers Aadhav Arjuna, KA Sengottaiyan and KG Arunraj.
The defections come after another group of former AIADMK leaders crossed over to the TVK. Earlier in June, former ministers MC Sampath, NR Sivapathi, Kadambur C Raju and Udumalai K Radhakrishnan joined the ruling party.
Several AIADMK legislators elected in the 2026 Assembly elections had also resigned their Assembly membership before joining the TVK.
Speaking after joining the ruling party, former Health Minister C Vijayabaskar said he and several other AIADMK leaders had urged the party leadership to forge a pre-poll alliance with the TVK ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.
After the election, they again requested the AIADMK leadership to support the TVK government, but the proposal was rejected, he said.
Vijayabaskar alleged that the AIADMK leadership was instead attempting to forge an alliance with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which, he said, went against the ideals of party founder MG Ramachandran, who had described the DMK as a "theeya sakthi" (evil force).
Calling Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay a "force of change", Vijayabaskar expressed confidence that the TVK would win future elections.
Claiming that nearly 10,000 AIADMK cadres had joined the TVK along with him, Vijayabaskar said the latest induction was "only a trailer."
"The main picture will unfold in the delta region," he said, indicating that more leaders and cadres would soon join the ruling party.
C Vijayabaskar had been associated with the AIADMK since his student days and served as Health Minister between 2013 and 2021 under former Chief Ministers J Jayalalithaa, O Panneerselvam and Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS).
He represented Pudukottai in 2001 and later won the Viralimalai Assembly constituency in 2011, 2016, 2021 and 2026.
Former Transport Minister MR Vijayabaskar, who resigned as the Karur MLA on June 29, blamed AIADMK general secretary EPS for the split.
He said the party leadership's decisions had weakened the AIADMK and alleged that attempts to align with the DMK had prompted him and others to leave the party.
MR Vijayabaskar served as Transport Minister between 2016 and 2021 and was elected from Karur in 2016 and again in 2026.
MSM Anandan served as Forest Minister in 2011, while S Valarmathi served as Minister for Backward Classes Welfare in 2016.
Former MLAs EM Manraj, MSR Rajavarman, Thirugnanasambandam and Sundarrajan, along with several former AIADMK district secretaries and party workers, also joined the TVK.
Welcoming the new entrants, Minister N Anand assured them that they would be accommodated within the party organisation.
"You are now part of the TVK family. You need not have any worries after coming here. We will take good care of you," he said.
Addressing the gathering, Minister Aadhav Arjuna said the AIADMK and the TVK shared similar political ideals, arguing that both parties had positioned themselves in opposition to the DMK.
He also alleged that the AIADMK and the DMK could eventually enter into an electoral alliance, either for the upcoming local body elections or the next Lok Sabha elections.
Revenue Minister KA Sengottaiyan defended the defectors after AIADMK general secretary EPS described them as "betrayers".
He alleged that it was the AIADMK leadership that had betrayed the party's legacy by attempting to move closer to the DMK.
Meanwhile, Health Minister KG Arunraj described the AIADMK as a "shell company" under its present leadership.
Reacting to Vijayabaskar's induction into the ruling party, DMK Parliamentary Party leader Kanimozhi Karunanidhi said the "washing machine" politics associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had now reached Tamil Nadu.
Referring to the gutkha scam allegations against Vijayabaskar, she asked whether the "new washing machine" could also wash away those allegations.