In another setback for the AIADMK, former Health Minister and Viralimalai MLA Dr. C. Vijayabaskar resigned from the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, 16 June 2026, as reported in The Hindu.
Dr. Vijayabaskar submitted his resignation letter to Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar at the Secretariat in Chennai. The Speaker later confirmed that he had accepted the resignation of the AIADMK leader.
Tamil Nadu: AIADMK MLA and Former Tamil Nadu Minister Dr C Vijayabaskar has resigned from his membership in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.
(Source: TN DIPR) pic.twitter.com/fboNZMvcNl
— ANI (@ANI) June 16, 2026
The resignation marks the latest development in the continuing exodus of AIADMK legislators following the 2026 Assembly elections and further weakens the party’s position in the Assembly.
Dr. Vijayabaskar is the fifth AIADMK MLA to resign from the Assembly within weeks of the elections. Earlier, Maduranthakam MLA Maragatham Kumaravel, Perundurai MLA S. Jayakumar, Dharapuram MLA P. Sathyabama and Ambasamudram MLA Esakki Subaya resigned from their Assembly seats and subsequently joined the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).
A senior AIADMK leader with decades of association with the party, Vijayabaskar has been linked to the organisation since his college days. He served as Tamil Nadu’s Health Minister between 2013 and 2021 under the governments headed by former Chief Ministers J. Jayalalithaa, O. Panneerselvam and Edappadi K. Palaniswami.
His electoral career spans more than two decades. Vijayabaskar was first elected to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from Pudukkottai in 2001. He later represented Viralimalai and won the constituency in the 2011, 2016, 2021 and 2026 Assembly elections.
The resignation comes amid growing turmoil within the AIADMK after a group of legislators openly defied the party leadership during the confidence vote held for the TVK government led by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay.
Vijayabaskar was among the 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs who voted in favour of the TVK government during the trust vote in the Assembly on May 13, despite directions issued by the party whip to oppose the motion.
The rebellion triggered a major political crisis within the AIADMK and fuelled speculation that several legislators were preparing to align themselves with the ruling TVK.
With Vijayabaskar’s resignation, the number of AIADMK MLAs quitting the Assembly after the elections has now risen to five, intensifying concerns over the party’s ability to maintain its legislative strength in the face of growing defections.
While Vijayabaskar has not yet publicly announced his future political course, his resignation is expected to further strengthen speculation about a possible shift towards the ruling camp, following the path taken by several other former AIADMK legislators who have already crossed over to the TVK.
Subscribe to our channels on WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram and YouTube to get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.
