AIADMK unlikely to get inducted into Union cabinet in reshuffle tomorrow

After much speculation, it has been learnt from sources that the AIADMK is unlikely to get any berth in the union cabinet reshuffle scheduled to take place on Sunday.

As of now, no official talks have taken place between the Modi government and the ruling party of Tamil Nadu, unlike what happened in Bihar. The Nitish Kumar government officially joined hands with the BJP-led NDA. This is not the case with the AIADMK.

The Prime Minister held meetings with both Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E. Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O. Paneerselvam. Several AIADMK leaders and MPs met union ministers recently for guidance on matters concerning the state and it seemed like AIADMK would ally with the NDA. But despite the merger between EPS and OPS, no official joining of the NDA and the AIADMK took place.

Rumours were abuzz again later when AIADMK leader and deputy Lok Sabha Speaker Thambidurai met PM Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah recently. Speculations started doing the rounds of the AIADMK getting at least one cabinet post, but this was denied by sources. Sources revealed that Thambidurai met the Prime Minister and BJP chief Amit Shah without the knowledge of many in the party.

Moreover, the merger is not complete and there are still quite a few sticking points that need to be ironed out. There still seems to be a sense of mistrust between both factions of the AIADMK and a fight for power among its leaders. It is well known that OPS compromised quite a bit with this merger. His demands were hardly met and he returned to be a part of the state government with the deputy CM's post and Finance portfolio. Meanwhile, there hasn't been an official ouster of VK Sasikala yet.

Another important factor is the income tax raids against many in the AIADMK. With leaders coming under the I-T scanner and raids that took place one after the other revealing the corruption rampant in the state of Tamil Nadu, it is evident that the Centre would stay away from joining hands with them.

TTV Dinakaran and the DMK have also issued threats to topple the ruling AIADMK government with their respective factions. With the AIADMK failing to overcome rebellion and weed out corruption from its ranks, it is highly unlikely that the union government is going to rope them in.