Mariappan Kennedy, who was elected as an AIADMK MLA in 2016 from the Manamadurai (Reserved) Assembly Constituency in the district, joined the DMK in the presence of party president and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in Chennai on Friday.
Speaking to reporters here, he said that he quit the AIADMK in 2018 and joined the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) following which he lost the MLA post. In the 2019 by-poll, he was defeated. Again, in the recently-held Assembly election, Mr. Kennedy, who contested as an AMMK candidate, lost. Hence, he decided to join the DMK.
The people of Tamil Nadu have given a massive mandate to the DMK and hence it would be ideal to be with the party to serve the needy, he said and added that the AMMK had no future since the people have rejected it outright. Similarly, the AIADMK was caught in a number of intra-party squabbles, and self-appointed leaders were keen about their welfare and not the party, he charged.
