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In a major political shift ahead of Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, three-time former Chief Minister and expelled All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) leader O Panneerselvam (OPS) joined the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Friday, February 27, in the presence of Chief Minister MK Stalin and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.
A man chosen by J Jayalalithaa to occupy the Chief Minister’s chair in her absence, and one who sat on a ‘dharmayudham’ against those he accused of destroying the AIADMK, O Panneerselvam has had an action-filled political career.
A staunch Jayalalithaa and AIADMK loyalist who was with the party for almost five decades, he was expelled in 2022 after a protracted fight with Edappadi Palaniswami over control of the AIADMK’s leadership.
But his decision to join the DMK, the AIADMK’s arch-nemesis, has lent the election an unexpected twist. He met DMK president MK Stalin at the DMK party headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, in Chennai.
In August 2025, Panneerselvam withdrew from the NDA, citing “insults” from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Later, OPS had made several pleas to rejoin the AIADMK but they were categorically rejected each time by AIADMK’s general secretary Edappadi K Palanisami.
In January, Panneerselvam tried for a truce against suggesting that if he were welcomed into the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), they could secure a massive victory. However, Edappadi Palaniswami publicly ruled out that proposal too.
Following this, he met Stalin on February 20, reportedly to congratulate him on “successful and good governance” over the last five years. He further said that the DMK party has a good chance of returning to power in Tamil Nadu. It was evident from then that OPS was likely to make a switch.
He contested from the Ramanathapuram constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as an Independent candidate and was defeated by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader K Navas Kani.