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New Indian Express

Son seems to have upper hand as PMK secys skip meet called by Ramadoss

CHENNAI: The simmering discontent between PMK founder S Ramadoss and his son Anbumani Ramadoss was once again under spotlight on Friday when only a handful of the party's 108 district secretaries took part in a meeting convened by the former at his Thailapuram residence near Tindivanam. The absence may be seen as a clear signal of the district secretaries rallying behind Anbumani in his attempt to establish himself as the party president. Anbumani also didn't take part in the meeting. The Chithirai conference of the Vanniyar Sangam held in Mamallapuram on May 11 was viewed as a major success for the party, with a large number of cadres in attendance. The strong turnout was especially significant, as the event was held after a gap of more than a decade and the first since the death of prominent Vanniyar Sangam leader J Guru, a key crowd-puller who passed away in 2018. However, before the buzz around the conference had fully faded, the party was once again hit by internal turmoil as most functionaries skipped the meeting called by Ramadoss, whose word was once considered sacred by them. At the Friday meeting attended by only a handful of functionaries including two of the party's five MLAs -- GK Mani and R Arul -- Ramadoss reiterated the need for efforts at the grassroots-level to win 50 Assembly seats in the 2026 elections, a goal he had earlier outlined at the Mamallapuram conference.