Former Minister Vijayabaskar Aiadmk Mla Quit

r JCD Prabhakar accepted the resignation shortly after Vijayabaskar submitted his letter at the Secretariat. His exit reduces the AIADMK’s strength in the Assembly to 42, and comes just weeks after four other legislators — Maragatham Kumaravel, S Jayakumar, P Sathyabama and Esakki Subaya — resigned and subsequently joined Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s ruling TVK.

Unlike those departures, however, Vijayabaskar’s resignation carries a different political weight. A four-time MLA, former health minister and one of the most recognisable faces of the Edappadi K Palaniswami era, Vijayabaskar has long been considered among the AIADMK’s strongest constituency politicians, a leader who built influence not through television studios or social media campaigns but through relentless ground-level engagement.

In his social media post, he signalled the break publicly. “Leadership is not authority or arrogance. It is a profound embrace of dedication,” he said in the post, which has been interpreted as a criticism of the current AIADMK leadership.

Vijayabaskar’s political journey has been closely intertwined with the AIADMK. Associated with the party since his college days, he rose through its ranks to become one of the youngest ministers in the Jayalalithaa government and later served as health minister under CMs Jayalalithaa, O Panneerselvam and Edappadi Palaniswami.

He first entered the Assembly from Pudukkottai in 2001, and later transformed Viralimalai into one of the party’s safest constituencies, winning repeatedly in 2011, 2016, 2021 and again in 2026. During the dramatic confidence vote that followed Vijay’s rise to power, Vijayabaskar was among the 25 AIADMK legislators who rebelled against the party whip and voted in favour of the new government.

At the time, many observers viewed the rebellion as a temporary protest against the AIADMK leadership. Tuesday’s resignation suggests that for at least some of those leaders, the break may be permanent. For Palaniswami, the loss is both numerical and symbolic.

Within the AIADMK, Vijayabaskar occupied a rare position. He combined ministerial experience with a durable local base and an unusual ability to maintain personal relationships across party lines.

Speaking to The Indian Express while seeking re-election from Viralimalai, he had said, “There is no designed strategy or social media teams. We should manage people, not the media.”

As health minister, he often highlighted the expansion of Tamil Nadu’s medical infrastructure, particularly in the central districts. He repeatedly pointed to medical colleges, drinking water schemes, roads and educational institutions as evidence that constituency politics ultimately depended on delivery rather than rhetoric.

His departure is, therefore, likely to be watched closely inside both the AIADMK and the TVK. For Vijay, who has steadily expanded his governing coalition, Vijayabaskar represents something more valuable than a single Assembly seat. He represents an established regional power centre.

The former minister, in his interview with The Indian Express in April, had dismissed Vijay as “not a game changer but a game spoiler”. Politics has moved quickly since then.

Arun Janardhanan is an experienced and authoritative Tamil Nadu correspondent for The Indian Express. Based in the state, his reporting combines ground-level access with long-form clarity, offering readers a nuanced understanding of South India’s political, judicial, and cultural life - work that reflects both depth of expertise and sustained authority. Expertise Geographic Focus: As Tamil Nadu Correspondent focused on politics, crime, faith and disputes, Janardhanan has been also reporting extensively on Sri Lanka, producing a decade-long body of work on its elections, governance, and the aftermath of the Easter Sunday bombings through detailed stories and interviews. Key Coverage Areas: State Politics and Governance: Close reporting on the DMK and AIADMK, the emergence of new political actors such as actor Vijay’s TVK, internal party churn, Centre–State tensions, and the role of the Governor. Legal and Judicial Affairs: Consistent coverage of the Madras High Court, including religion-linked disputes and cases involving state authority and civil liberties. Investigations: Deep-dive series on landmark cases and unresolved questions, including the Tirupati encounter and the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, alongside multiple investigative series from Tamil Nadu. Culture, Society, and Crisis: Reporting on cultural organisations, language debates, and disaster coverage—from cyclones to prolonged monsoon emergencies—anchored in on-the-ground detail. His reporting has been recognised with the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism. Beyond journalism, Janardhanan is also a screenwriter; his Malayalam feature film Aarkkariyam was released in 2021. ... Read More