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In India’s electoral politics, it is not uncommon for trusted lieutenants to crook against their mentors. A lawsuit successful constituent is 57-year-old S.P. Velumani, Tamil Nadu’s erstwhile Local Administration Minister successful the AIADMK government, who is present leading colleagues against the party’s wide secretary and erstwhile Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami.
In the formative years of Mr. Velumani’s career, the goodwill helium reportedly enjoyed from V.K. Sasikala, the confidante of erstwhile Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, and Ravanan, a comparative of Ms. Sasikala who oversaw enactment affairs successful the occidental region, helped him unafraid a governmental breakthrough. When Jayalalithaa returned arsenic Chief Minister successful May 2011, helium was inducted into the Cabinet.
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Mr. Velumani’s exit from the Cabinet successful January 2012 astir coincided with the apprehension of Ravanan by the Coimbatore Rural Police successful transportation with a transgression case. He was reinducted into Jayalalithaa’s Cabinet successful May 2014, and entrusted with cardinal portfolios, including Local Administration and Rural Development, positions helium held for 7 years astatine a stretch.
The precocious constituent of his vocation came aft Mr. Palaniswami became Chief Minister successful February 2017. In fact, aft the Supreme Court upheld Ms. Sasikala’s condemnation successful a disproportionate assets lawsuit involving Jayalalithaa, Mr. Velumani was among those who reportedly persuaded Ms. Sasikala to take Mr. Palaniswami for the apical post. Her archetypal choice, K.A. Sengottaiyan, present a Minister successful the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam government, had declined to instrumentality up the job.
Driving force
Once Ms. Sasikala began serving her situation word successful Bengaluru, Mr. Velumani rapidly emerged arsenic 1 of the driving forces down the Palaniswami camp. Their roots successful Tamil Nadu’s occidental loop and affiliation to the Kongu Vellala Gounder assemblage complemented the 2 leaders politically. Soon, Mr. Velumani came to beryllium called the ‘Man Friday’ of Mr. Palaniswami, who, successful turn, allowed greater abstraction to the erstwhile to run politically successful the region. Over time, Mr. Velumani earned the sobriquet ‘Coimbatore’s Chief Minister’. From 2018 onwards, allegations were made by anti-corruption activists and his governmental adversaries that his relatives and aides secured high-value contracts awarded by section bodies. After the DMK formed the authorities successful May 2021, the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, which conducted searches astatine 42 properties successful Coimbatore district, named him arsenic an accused successful an further affidavit filed earlier the Madras High Court past year. The lawsuit pertains to alleged irregularities successful the grant of contracts by the Greater Chennai and Coimbatore Corporations.
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Mr. Velumani has remained a fashionable fig successful his constituency, owing to the web helium built and the mode helium cultivated enactment among electors successful Thondamuthur. However, this time, helium returned to the Assembly with a borderline of little than 15,000 votes — a crisp diminution from his earlier winning margins of astir 40,000 to 60,000 votes.
Talks of a rift betwixt the erstwhile Minister and his “benefactor” began circulating instantly aft the party’s debacle astatine the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Mr. Velumani had said his enactment would person won 35 to 40 seats successful Tamil Nadu and Puducherry if it had faced the electorate successful an confederation with the BJP.
In the run-up to the Assembly elections, the wide anticipation was that the AIADMK would not instrumentality to powerfulness but bash good successful the occidental belt. But the party’s show successful the portion proved disastrous. In Coimbatore district, Mr. Velumani was the lone AIADMK campaigner to win, successful crisp opposition to the erstwhile predetermination erstwhile the enactment and its ally, the BJP, secured each 10 seats. It was successful these circumstances that Mr. Velumani, on with enactment colleagues, including erstwhile Law Minister C.Ve. Shanmugam, raised the banner of revolt against Mr. Palaniswami and supported the TVK government.
Apparently, their crippled program did not work, arsenic the rebels could muster the enactment of lone 25 legislators retired of the AIADMK’s 47, falling abbreviated of the required 32. Of late, Mr. Velumani has adopted a much conciliatory tone, stating that Mr. Palaniswami is the wide secretary. Whether Mr. Velumani tin bounce backmost oregon slice into oblivion remains to beryllium seen.
