Sasikala's appointment as AIADMK general secretary quashed at today's meet

T T V Dhinakaran's appointment as the party's deputy general secretary will no longer be valid

The AIADMK general council meeting called by the ruling Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam (OPS) faction on Tuesday passed a resolution that quashed the appointment of jailed leader V K Sasikala as the party's general secretary.

This was one among the 14 resolutions passed at Tuesday's meeting. The decisions taken at the general council meeting are subject to the Madras High Court's final decision.

The party said that Jayalalithaa was the "eternal general secretary" of AIADMK and nobody could take over her role. During Tuesday's meeting, Jayalaithaa's empty chair, which was kept on the stage during the previous meetings, was missing.

"General secretary post is always to be held by Amma (AIADMK members address Jayalaithaa as Amma, which also means mother) and it shall remain forever, and only Amma has all the credibility to be there. There is no one else for the post and the bylaw is ratified to that effect," the resolution said.

On December 28, 2016, at the same venue, the same set of people had selected Sasikala as the party's general secretary after Jayalailthaa's death.

The quashing of Sasikala's appointment as the interim general secretary also means that T T V Dhinakaran's appointment as the party's deputy general secretary by Sasikala would no longer be valid.

Panneerselvam, a trusted aide to Jayalalithaa, agreed to merge with the EPS faction after the latter agreed to the condition that Sasikala and Dhinakaran would be ousted from their party posts.

All the powers of the general secretary would be transferred to O Panneerselvam and Edappadi Palaniswami, who will head the party's steering committee.

The other important resolutions at Tuesday's meeting included retrieving the AIADMK name and symbol and ratifying the merger of the two AIADMK factions. Leading the resolution ratifying the merger, Panneerselvam said, "The AIADMK will continue to be a unified faction and we shall retrieve the two leaves symbol. Office bearers appointed by Amma will continue... two leaves and Aiadmk name to be retrieved."

The EPS-OPS faction claimed that around 90 per cent of the party's functionaries attended the general council meeting held at Vanagaram. According to political analysts, if the numbers are true, then the EPS-OPS faction has proved its strength and it is a big set back for Dhinakaran.

The AIADMK general council comprises 2,140 members and 290 executive council members.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Subramanian Swamy said he believes that summoning the AIADMK general council without Sasikala was illegal.