In further signs of fissures within DMK, party chief M Karunanidhi's son M K Alagiri on Monday skipped the crucial executive committee meet, which is likely to take key decisions in the wake of the party's pullout from the United Progressive Alliance.
Alagiri left for Madurai by a morning flight, sources said. The Madurai strongman and former union minister's action assumes significance in the wake of his submitting resignation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week separately after Karunanidhi withdrew support to the UPA coalition.
Sibling rivalry is not new in DMK with Alagiri and his brother Stalin vying for the coveted "political heir apparent" throne of Karunanidhi.
Recently, the DMK chief had indicated that Stalin would be his successor, drawing flak from Alagiri who said that DMK is not a "mutt" where a senior pontiff can anoint his successor.