Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa’s school friend Badar Sayeed has quit the AIADMK and joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Sayeed, 67, was an MLA from Triplicane constituency in Chennai from 2006 to 2011 while the party was in the Opposition.

“Sayeed formally joined our party in the presence of Tamil Nadu state convenor Christina Samy on Wednesday. The party welcomes her wholeheartedly,” said M. Lenin, AAP’s media in-charge, told Indiatoday.in.

He said it is up to the party to field her in the Lok Sabha elections.

Sayeed was feeling sidelined and aloof in the AIADMK for quite some time, more so after Jayalalithaa came back to power in May 2011.

But her decision has surprised the AIADMK and political observers.

“I joined the AAP for personal reasons. I can’t reveal what these reasons are. There are no political reasons. Whether I will contest or not can’t be revealed now,” Sayeed told Indiatoday.in.

A leading lawyer in the Madras High Court, the 67-year-old is known for her outspokenness and boldness.

Six months ago, she filed a petition in the Madras High Court challenging the authority of Muslim qazis to grant ‘talaq’ (divorce).

She challenged the practice quoting Indian law and scriptures and said qazis granting divorce is illegal and anti-Islam and prayed the court to ban the practice.

The case is pending.

Sayeed was two years senior to Jayalalithaa in the Chennai’s Church Park Convent school.

She has a son and a daughter and her husband is a neurosurgeon in Chennai.

Political observers are surprised by Sayeed’s move.

Only on rare occasions have AIADMK leaders quit the party, especially when Jayalalithaa is in power.

“It is surprising. Jayalaltihaa has an iron grip over the party. People are afraid about even thinking of deserting. If this trend continues, it will be good not only for the AIADMK, which lacks even basic rights of dissent but also for democracy and Tamil Nadu politics,” said V. Durai Kannan, a senior journalist and political observer.