Tamil Nadu’s post-election political uncertainty deepened on Thursday after AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami held a closed-door interaction with newly elected party legislators at a luxury resort near Puducherry, where he reportedly urged them to stay united and “remain patient” for the next few days.

The nearly hour-long meeting took place at a private property near Ariyankuppam on the outskirts of Puducherry and was attended by close to 40 MLAs.

The gathering comes at a politically sensitive moment, with actor-politician Vijay attempting to stitch together support for his party TVK after emerging as the single-largest formation in the Tamil Nadu Assembly election.

AIADMK tries to shut down rebellion rumours

The sudden movement of AIADMK legislators to Puducherry set off intense speculation in political circles, with reports suggesting a section of the party wanted to support TVK in government formation.

Videos from the resort further fuelled the buzz after several MLAs and senior leaders were seen stationed there.

However, the AIADMK leadership has publicly denied any internal split. Party functionaries claimed the legislators were shifted only to shield them from alleged poaching attempts and insisted there was no rebellion brewing against the leadership of EPS, as Palaniswami is popularly known.

Sources within the party indicated that confusion initially erupted because the AIADMK chief had not immediately clarified his position after TVK’s impressive electoral debut.

That silence reportedly encouraged speculation that some MLAs were open to backing Vijay. The leadership has now attempted to draw a clear line, informing legislators that the party has not committed support to TVK.

Senior leaders, including CV Shanmugam and KP Munusamy also publicly reiterated that no formal request for support had come from TVK.

The numbers battle in the 234-member Assembly remains tight. TVK won 108 seats in its first-ever election but still requires additional support to cross the majority mark.

The Congress has already extended backing, while Left parties and the VCK are yet to make their final stand clear.

Political observers believe the coming days could prove crucial not only for Vijay’s government ambitions but also for the future direction of the AIADMK, which is struggling to recover from a series of electoral setbacks following the death of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.