Tamil Nadu Law Minister, R. Nirmalkumar, dismissed claims that his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), was engaging in horse-trading to attract leaders from rival parties. He emphasized that those joining TVK were driven by political beliefs rather than financial incentives. Nirmalkumar clarified that leaders leaving the DMK and AIADMK were disillusioned with their party leaderships and were making independent choices, not succumbing to political poaching.
He differentiated between voluntary resignations based on loss of faith in existing leadership and inducements for defection, stating that TVK had not coerced anyone to join. Nirmalkumar criticized the Opposition, linking allegations of political horse-trading to former minister V. Senthilbalaji and his followers. He also downplayed a complaint filed by DMK’s R.S. Bharathi with the CBI regarding the alleged poaching of legislators, calling it a frivolous act.
The minister criticized the AIADMK, highlighting a decline in its organizational strength post-election. According to him, the party’s influence is now limited to specific districts in southern Tamil Nadu. Nirmalkumar humorously suggested potential future political alliances involving key figures from the AIADMK and DMK. He also addressed governance issues, mentioning the procedure for meeting the Chief Minister and confirming the state government’s stance on language policy and party fund scrutiny.
