TTV Dhinakaran was arrested earlier for allegedly attempting to bribe Election Commission officials.
A case of sedition has been filed against sidelined AIADMK leader TTV Dhinakaran and 15 of his supporters for allegedly distributing pamphlets carrying personal attacks against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswami. The pamphlets, the Salem police said, also attempted to mobilise the people against the state government. Three of the men - including former lawmaker SE Venkatachalam -- have been arrested.
The case was filed following a complaint by one Vinayakam, alleging that the men were distributing the pamphlets outside a hall where Mr Palaniswami was holding a meeting with senior officials yesterday.
Mr Dhinakaran who had been locked in a tussle with Mr Palaniswami over the control of the party, las lately been trying to pull down his government. Over the last few months, he had a series of meetings with the Governor to ask for a trust vote and has finally approached the court. On September 18, Mr Dhinakaran and his loyalist P Vetrivel -- one of the 18 rebel lawmakers of the AIADMK - were disqualified from the Tamil Nadu Assembly under the anti-defection law.
Earlier, Mr Dhinakaran, along with his supporter, actor Senthil, had been booked for allegedly making defamatory remarks against P Kumar, an AIADMK lawmaker from Tiruchirappalli.
In April, he was arrested for allegedly attempting to bribe Election Commission officials to secure the AIADMK's 'two leaves' election symbol for his faction. The contender for the symbol was Jayalalithaa loyalist O Panneerselvam, who later worked out a merger with E Palaniswami's larger faction on condition that Mr Dhinakaran and his aunt, VK Sasikala, be dethroned.
Mr Dhinakaran had been named the party number 2 by VK Sasikala before she was jailed in a corruption case in February. The live-in aide of Ms Jayalalithaa, Ms Sasikala had taken over the party chief's post after the former chief minister's death in December. Ms Sasikala's ambition to take over the reins of government as the Chief Minister had caused the rift with Mr Pannerselvam, who as the stand-in for Jayalalithaa, had taken over the top post after her death.