- Sasikala, her nephew TTV Dhinakaran removed from the ruling AIADMK
- Teams of senior ministers have been formed for the merger of the two AIADMK factions
- Panneerselvam has welcomed the idea of the merger, but has listed his conditions
- Delhi Police booked TTV Dhinakaran on charges of bribing EC officials to get the ‘two leaves’ symbol
Watch this space for all the live updates.
Sasikala, TTV Dhinakaran Ousted From AIADMK
Ahead of the likely merger between OPS and EPS camp, 20 AIADMK ministers have ousted Sasikala, TTV Dhinakaran and her family members from the party on Tuesday.
Speaking to the media, Tamil Nadu’s Finance Minister D Jayakumar said:
Our aim is to keep the party together. The cadres don’t want TTV Dhinakaran to lead the party. To put it bluntly, Sasikala and her family cannot lead the party... We have decided to remove Sasikala, TTV Dhinakaran and his family from AIADMK, a committee will run the party.
However, OPS loyalist C Ponnaiyan said their camp has not been officially intimated of the development.
We do not know directly what has been said. Let talks begin, only then we can comment on the way forward.
Sasikala, Dhinakaran Should be Out of the Party: KC Palanisamy
KC Palanisamy, Former AIADMK MP from the OPS faction said that it is clear that Sasikala and Dhinakaran should be out of the party. He said that theirs was the true AIADMK. He went on to say that Sasikala and Dhinakaran should not be associated with the party directly or indirectly.
Sasikala Camp Has a Compromise Formula, but OPS Will Not Budge
The News Minute reported that the Sasikala camp has proposed a compromise formula. However, sources in the O Panneerselvam camp say that they will not agree to that formula.
According to sources, this is what the Sasikala camp has suggested: They want Sasikala to remain the interim General Secretary of the party. TTV Dhinakaran will step down as the Deputy General Secretary of the party and OPS will become the Deputy GS. Cabinet posts will be given to OPS and other senior leaders in the OPS camp like Mafoi Pandiarajan. Edappadi Palanisamy will continue to be the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.
This formula is not going down well at all with the OPS camp.
The Party Should Not Be in the Hand of One Family: OPS
O Panneerselvam addressed the media on Tuesday and listed his conditions on the merger.
His first condition was to start a judicial probe over Jayalalithaa’s death. He called the appointment of Sasikala as general secretary illegal.
He also questioned the bribing of voters in RK Nagar and asked for an enquiry in the matter. He also advocated for the dynasty politics to end.