Ministers slam senior AIADMK leader for remarks against party

A senior AIADMK leader today ruffled feathers in the ruling dispensation with his outburst against relatives of party General Secretary V K Sasikala, drawing the ire of some ministers who slammed him for his remarks.
Former Minister KP Munusamy, who was dropped by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa from her cabinet in 2014, also hailed her successor O Panneerselvam, lauding him for being "accessible."
Munusamy trained his guns at Sasikala's brother V K Divakaran for his reported remarks that his family had contributed to the strengthening of the party since its founding by the late M G Ramachandran.
Munusamy contested Divakaran's remarks that Sasikala's husband Natarajan played a key role in unifying the different factions of AIADMK post Ramachandran's death and said it was the party founder's wife, Janaki, who had asked Jayalalithaa to lead AIADMK in her husband's absence.

"Today they are speaking as if they reclaimed the AIADMK symbol (Two Leaves) though it was Janaki who wrote to Election Commission in this regard," he claimed while talking to reporters at Krishnagiri.
Divakaran's statement had 'hurt' the feelings of party workers and he should express regret for it, Munusamy said.

Senior AIADMK Ministers were quick to lash out at their former colleague, with Food Minister R Kamaraj alleging that Munusamy was never loyal to the high command.
"He was never loyal to the high command. He is part of the efforts to break the party," he charged.
Handlooms Minister OS Manian said Munusamy's remarks amounted to affecting the party's discipline and said they were wrong and "condemnable."

Law Minister C Ve Shanmugam charged Munusamy with trying to make such statements "for some benefit."
"Amma (Jayalalithaa) gave him minister post but he could not ensure AIADMK's win in the (2014) Lok Sabha polls (at Dharmapuri)," he said.
Munusamy, who was Minister for Municipal Administration after AIADMK captured power in 2011 before holding Labour portfolio later, was considered to be powerful till 2014 when he fell out of favour with Jayalalithaa when the party lost the Dharmapuri seat in the Parliamentary polls.
Besides being removed from her cabinet, Munusamy was also sacked as the party's Krishnagiri district secretary.
He was also removed from the party's disciplinary committee, an elite league which had only three other members, including Panneerslevam.