Madurai:Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, who recently announced his decision to align with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), is set to formally bring his supporters into the party fold at a public event in Tirumangalam, Madurai, on Saturday. The programme will take place in the presence of Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, with the DMK leadership projecting the development as a significant political moment in the state’s evolving alliances.

Yet, beneath the official enthusiasm, sections of the party in southern Tamil Nadu appear far from celebratory. Conversations with several district-level functionaries reveal unease, even resentment, over what they describe as the leadership’s growing reliance on leaders who once belonged to the rival All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

A senior functionary from the southern belt said the party’s approach of welcoming defectors with prominent posts has left long-time cadres disillusioned. “Those who arrive from the AIADMK are often given red-carpet treatment. They are placed in key organisational posts or even considered for ministerial responsibilities, while those who have worked within the party structure for years are pushed aside,” he said.

The sentiment, voiced by several local leaders, is that the DMK government today includes a noticeable number of figures who once belonged to the AIADMK. OPS, as Panneerselvam is widely known in Tamil Nadu politics, is now being spoken of in the same breath.

Speculation within party circles suggests that he may be accommodated in a senior organisational role. Some even claim that if the DMK retains power in the next Assembly election, he could be considered for the post of Speaker in the Legislative Assembly. None of these possibilities has been officially confirmed by the party leadership.

Local DMK leaders argue that the calculation behind the move may be linked to electoral arithmetic. The leadership is believed to expect that OPS could help attract sections of the Mukkulathor community in the southern districts. But many in the party privately question the assumption.

“They are misreading the situation,” said another district-level organiser. “The community once rallied behind leaders like V. K. Sasikala and T. T. V. Dhinakaran largely because of their association with J. Jayalalithaa. That context no longer exists. It would be unrealistic to assume that the community will automatically shift its support to the DMK simply because OPS has joined it.”

Such scepticism has given rise to a phrase increasingly heard in internal conversations: that OPS may turn out to be “extra luggage” for the party rather than a source of electoral momentum.

Leaders in the AIADMK camp dismiss the DMK’s claims about the scale of support moving with Panneerselvam. A Madurai-based AIADMK office-bearer said that when OPS began openly praising the DMK leadership, many of the few supporters who still stood with him chose to return to the AIADMK.

“He says that 80 per cent of AIADMK members are ready to join the DMK through him at the Madurai event. If that were really the case, he could have easily started a new party of his own. Why would he need to lean on the DMK?” the functionary asked.

According to leaders in the AIADMK, many of those who once backed Panneerselvam during his political confrontations within the party have already moved on. A large majority, they claim, have rejoined the AIADMK, while others have dispersed across different political formations.

Critics also point to OPS’s standing in his home district. Once considered a formidable figure in Theni, they say his influence has waned considerably over the past few years.

“That is perhaps why the merger programme is being organised in Madurai rather than his own district,” said an AIADMK leader. “In Theni, DMK cadres may shake hands with him because the leadership has asked them to, but that does not necessarily mean they see him as an asset.”

Some DMK leaders in the region privately admit that integrating a long-time rival into the party structure will not be easy. Figures such as Thanga Tamilselvan, who once fought sharp political battles against OPS in the southern districts, will now have to share political space with him.

Whether this uneasy coexistence evolves into a workable political arrangement remains to be seen. For now, the Tirumangalam event may offer a glimpse of the DMK leadership’s strategy — and the resistance it quietly faces within its own ranks.