AIADMK rebels, rattled by desertion, return to party fold

For the AIADMK rebels, it is a homecoming from Trishanku Swarg! Rattled by defections from their ranks to the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which left them in the lurch with nowhere to go, the 15 dissidents patched up their differences and returned to the parent fold on Wednesday.

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Bringing the curtains down on the split, the rebels blinked first, since their expectation of getting into the Vijay ministry or securing some crumbs of office had gone awry as the TVK was jittery accommodating them. This was despite their voting in favour of the government in the trust vote on 13 May, against the party whip.

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) readmitted them just two days before the deadline for condonation in the disqualification proceedings before the Speaker. The dissidents, who were stripped of their party posts and facing eventual disqualification, had no option.

And their rebellion proved to be a storm in a teacup.