CHENNAI: AIADMK party whip Agri SS Krishnamurthy on Thursday said party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is ready to make “any sacrifice” to safeguard the party and is open to suggestions from all leaders.Senior leaders such as Mailam MLA C Ve Shanmugam could meet Palaniswami at any time and express their views, Krishnamurthy said. He was responding to Shanmugam’s remarks that Palaniswami should consult all stakeholders on the party’s “worst performance” in the bypolls and take corrective measures.“The general secretary will convene the general council at an appropriate time. He is working vigorously to bring back Amma’s govt,” Krishnamurthy said, adding that everyone, including Shanmugam, could air their views and offer suggestions at the meeting.On the representation submitted to Governor R V Arlekar, Krishnamurthy said they had flagged a recent statement by senior minister K A Sengottaiyan that 15 AIADMK MLAs were ready to join TVK. He alleged that the statement indicated that the C Joseph Vijay-led TVK govt was indulging in horse-trading.“The senior minister’s statement is ample evidence that horse-trading is still going on,” he said, adding that the party had submitted supporting materials, including video footage of the minister’s remarks, and sought the governor’s intervention to end the practice. He alleged that the defections had forced bypolls on the people.Krishnamurthy criticised the ruling party over tenders to purchase power at Rs 35 per unit. He reiterated the AIADMK’s charge that govt had created an artificial power crisis by cancelling tenders and agreements entered into by the previous DMK govt with power generation firms. The govt had also failed to anticipate electricity demand over the past four months, leading to the current situation, he alleged.“Now, they are floating tenders to purchase power at such a high rate,” he said.Meanwhile, Anaithu India Puratchi Thalaivar Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader V K Sasikala criticised the AIADMK leadership over the party’s continued electoral defeats. She attributed the losses to wrong decisions by certain leaders and stressed the need for unity to bring everyone together and restore the party to its former glory.“I plead with everyone to come together to rebuild the party and restore its past glory,” she said. Sasikala criticised those who had switched camps, alleging that many had left the party for personal gain after enjoying its benefits.
