AIADMK leader and former MP V Maitreyan joined M K Stalin-led DMK on Wednesday, becoming the second high-profile leader to leave the AIADMK fold to join the ruling party. Maitreyan, a renowned oncologist, joined the party in the presence of senior DMK leaders and ministers Duraimurugan and KN Nehru, and Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin in Chennai.
This comes as a huge setback to AIADMK, which is hoping to revive its chances by allying with the BJP in the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
Maitreyan said his decision to leave AIADMK was because “nothing was moving right in the party”. He said the AIADMK cadre was in a state of distress and there was much confusion within the party.
“The AIADMK’s course is not right. Amit Shah, while announcing the AIADMK-BJP alliance, announced a coalition government. He said it was a minimum action plan. But it is not clear on what basis a consensus has been reached between the AIADMK and the BJP,” Maitreyan said, accusing the AIADMK of being under the clutches of the BJP. “My services were not utilised by the party. Hence, I quit,” he added.
He went on to praise the M K Stalin government, stating the Chief Minister was working not only for the welfare of Tamil Nadu but also for the welfare of all the states in the country.
Maitreyan’s career
A famous doctor based in Chennai, Maitrayen’s career has always been about party switching. He began his career in the BJP in the 1990s. He was the vice president and general secretary of the party’s state unit, but was expelled for anti-party activities. In 1999, he moved to AIADMK after accepting the leadership of the late former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. Maitreyan was known as one of Jayalalithaa's confidants and went on to be Rajya Sabha MP for three consecutive terms. After Jayalalithaa's death, when the AIADMK split, he supported former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam. He was expelled from the party after he had a conflict with the EPS team. Following this, he went back to the BJP, but didn’t receive any major posts there.
Last year, Maitreyan returned to AIADMK only to desert it a year later.