P Kannan, the estranged Congress leader and former Rajya Sabha MP, joined AIADMK on Sunday.

Kannan’s decision will be a major setback for Congress which has been trying to win back power from its splinter group All India NR Congress Party in Puducherry, according to The Times of India.

P Kannan has a mass following in Puducherry but for the past few years, the Congress leaders were not consulting with him for any major decisions in the Union Territory. When Union Minister V Narayanasamy was nominated for re-election from Puducherry constituency in 2014 Lok Sabha election, Kannan was not consulted which led to resignation of his supporters.

Kannan refused to campaign for V Narayanasamy. He lost the polls to AINRC candidate R Radhakrishnan. Kannan was given a showcase notice later for this, according to TOI.

Moreover, he began to express his anger over the AINRC government. He called it a corrupt party and also said that it colluded with the ruling party in corrupt activities, according to TOI.e