DHARAPURAM: In a clear shift in his campaign pitch, chief minister C Joseph Vijay sharpened his attack on AIADMK, in Dharapuram on Wednesday, while continuing to target DMK.Campaigning for TVK candidate P Sathyabama, Vijay accused AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami of betraying party icons M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa by “collaborating” with DMK. It was because of this betrayal that Sathyabama quit AIADMK and joined TVK, he said. In a direct appeal to AIADMK supporters, Vijay sought to equate the two parties. “A vote for AIADMK is no different than a vote for DMK. Both parties are the same,” he said.Simultaneously, Vijay sought to position himself as the inheritor of the political legacy of MGR and Jayalalithaa. “Vijay is the only person who is courageously taking on DMK, just like MGR and madam Jayalalithaa. MGR’s followers and people are aware of this,” he said.In the past, Vijay would hit out hard on DMK, while referring to AIADMK in a dismissive tone as a “spent force”. In Dharapuram, he did not name EPS or directly refer to AIADMK, instead referring to the party as ‘matrum palar” (the others). Yet, much of his speech was directed at the party. The shift comes amid growing competition from AIADMK in Dharapuram and resistance to Sathyabama in several villages. P 6
