AIADMK golden jubilee conference kicks off in Madurai

As massive crowd throng venue, traffic comes to grinding halt on Ring Road

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami receiving a ‘vel’ from party leaders at the party’s golden jubilee conference in Madurai on August 20, 2023 | Photo Credit: G. Moorthy

A massive crowd of AIADMK cadres has thronged the venue of ‘ezhuchi’ (rising) conference of party’s golden jubilee celebrations here on August 20.

The conference kicked off with the party general secretary, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, hoisting the party flag on a 51-foot-high mast amidst a sea of crowd. Senior party leaders, Sellur, K. Raju, R.B. Udhayakumar and V.V. Rajan Chellappa welcomed him by garlanding him.

Even as Mr. Palaniswami hoisted the flag amidst loud cheer from the party cadres, a chopper showered flower petals on them. Helium-filled balloons in white, black and red, were released into the air.

Hundreds of party cadres, led by party leader, R.B. Udhayakumar, dressed up in white uniform, gave him a guard of honour. Mr. Palaniswami received the torches which were brought by party cadres from different parts of the State.

A silver sceptre and ‘vel’ were presented to him by the leaders.

Mr. Palaniswami, who was scheduled to pay floral tributes to the portraits of former Chief Ministers, C.N. Annadurai, M.G. Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa, before inaugurating a multi-media exhibition on the golden jubilee history of AIADMK could not get down from his vehicle due to surge from crowd towards him. Instead, he went around the conference venue in his vehicle and greeted the cadres and left for his hotel.

The cultural programmes started with an orchestra belting out popular songs of MGR-starrer. It started with the famous song, “Achcham enbathu madaiyada”.

A near capacity crowd filled up the conference venue for which a pandal for five-lakh square feet has been put up. Huge digital screens have been erected on the venue for the crowd to witness the conference proceedings.

Despite some 300 acres of parking space being provided at different places for vehicles coming to the conference, traffic on Uthangudi-Kappalur Ring Road came to a grinding halt in the morning. Hundreds of vehicles from different parts of the State kept arriving on the Ring Road heading to the venue near Madurai Airport.

Mr. Palaniswami would address the party cadres in the evening.