JOIN USLegislature party office-bearers’ election: AIADMK MLAs to meet on June 14
Newly-elected legislators of principal Opposition, AIADMK, will meet for the third time in over a month on June 14 during which deputy leader and whip of the Legislature Party are likely to be elected.
The meeting assumes significance as it comes amidst differences between joint heads of the party, Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam and open assertions by ousted interim general secretary V K Sasikala on “setting things right” in the AIADMK.
The two leaders are said to be sparring over crucial posts in the Legislature Party.
Despite 10-year anti-incumbency, the AIADMK put up an impressive show in the April 6 assembly elections by winning 66 seats, its best performance in a losing election since the party’s inception in 1972. However, the party’s fault lines were exposed in the first meeting of the Legislature Party when the two leaders had a row.
Palaniswami was elected as the Leader of the Opposition on May 10 despite stiff resistance from Panneerselvam, who had stood by J Jayalalithaa twice when she had to quit as Chief Minister due to court cases.
Since Panneerselvam left the venue in a hurry on May 10, deputy leader and whip of the AIADMK Legislature Party were not elected. The meeting on June 14 is expected to be stormy much like the previous ones with Panneerselvam asking for the post of the whip to be given to one of his supporters.
However, it is believed Palaniswami is not willing to part with the crucial post to the opposite camp. “EPS offered the post of deputy leader of Opposition to OPS during the meeting on May 10. The offer stands, and from our interactions with the former CM, it looks like he will not offer the post of the whip to OPS supporters,” a senior AIADMK leader told DH.
The post of the whip is considered crucial as legislators are bound to go by the party whip, sources said, adding that EPS will not give away the post to the OPS camp, as he wants to consolidate his position in the party further.
What could worry EPS is the fact that OPS is already in touch with the family of Sasikala, who is now talking to cadres over the phone and promising them that she would “certainly take over the AIADMK”.
The meeting is also expected to discuss Sasikala’s telephonic conversations, though Palaniswami and other leaders maintain that the close aide of Jayalalithaa is no longer with the party.