Former Minister Aranganayakam quits AIADMK

Chennai, Aug 25 (UNI) Former Minister C Aranganayakam today quit the AIADMK in protest against the style of functioning of Party Supremo J Jayalalithaa.

Mr Aranganayakam, who had served as the Education Minister in the late MGR Cabinet for ten years and later in the Jayalalithaa Ministry between 1991-93, said he had suffered enormous mental agony and humiliations in the last ten years under her leadership.

Mr Aranganayakam had served as Education and Labour Minister in the Jayalalithaa Ministry in 1991-93.

He was removed from the Jayalalithaa Ministry in 1993 and since then he was sidelined in the party.

Mr Aranganayakam told UNI that he would decide his future course of action within a week after consulting his friends.

Ever since, he joined the AIADMK when M G Ramachandran floated the Party in 1972, he had been loyal to the party and worked for its development, he added.

''But I was branded as a traitor by Ms Jayalalithaa in all the General council meetings,'' he claimed.

Mr Aranganayakam said when Ms Jayalalithaa came to Coimbatore for election campaign for the May eight Assembly polls, he had met her and sought her blessings on the occasion of his 75th birthday.

As he could not make out as to why he was being sidelined in the Party, he said he had tendered an apology letter to her. But she ignored it. ''This has badly affected me, after which I had decided to quit the party,'' he added.

Mr Aranganayakam entered politics in 1946 during his student days.

After closely associated with the Dravidar Kazhagam, he had joined the DMK when late Chief Minister C N Annadurai launched the Party in 1949.

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