With the Election Commission (EC) deciding to hold by-election to the Erode (East) assembly constituency next month, the AIADMK’s district units’ secretaries are going to meet on January 11 at their party headquarters here.
This was announced by the party general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami in a release on Tuesday. The release did not mention the purpose for the scheduled meeting, even though it was issued to the media a few hours after the EC’s announcement
Since the AIADMK lost power in May 2021, it contested in the by-poll to the same assembly seat which was held in February 2023. The party was defeated by the Congress by a margin of around 66,200 votes. But, the principal Opposition party chose to boycott the Vikravandi by-election held in July last year, on the ground that it would not take place in a “free and fair” manner. The decision was taken after the party’s drubbing in the Lok Sabha poll that was conducted in April-May 2024.
It remains to be seen whether there will be a re-alignment of anti-DMK political forces, as the divided Opposition was one of the reasons for an overwhelming performance of the DMK-led front in the Lok Sabha election.
Earlier in the day, the party organised an event to launch the distribution and pasting of stickers on four wheelers as part of its campaign on the alleged sexual assault of a girl student on the campus of Anna University.
Published – January 07, 2025 10:10 pm IST