CHENNAI: Former AIADMK minister Thoppu N D Venkatachalam joined the DMK, along with a few hundreds of his supporters, in the presence of chief minister M K Stalin on Sunday at the party headquarters Anna Arivalayam.
"If I am given one month's time by our DMK party president, I will get 25,000 functionaries and cadres from other parties to join the DMK, when the chief minister visits Erode. We will strengthen the party in Erode in time for the ensuing local body polls, " Venkatachalam said, after formally joining the DMK. Senior DMK leaders S Durai Murugan, T R Baalu, A Raja and S Muthusamy were present.
A two-time MLA having been elected to the state assembly in 2011 and 2016 from Perundhurai assembly segment in Erode district, Venkatachalam served as the state environment and revenue minister in former chief minister J Jayalalithaa's 2011-16 cabinet.
The party denied him a nomination in the 2021 assembly election. Miffed over this, Venkatachalam unsuccessfully entered the fray as a rebel candidate and was expelled from the party.
