Chennai Exp chugs on

The starting blocks for the merger negotiation between the two warring factions of the AIADMK are drawing closer with former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Friday announcing his seven-member committee to hold talks with the Edappadi group. The latter had already formed a seven-member negotiation team under Lok Sabha member R. Vaithilingam.

This development is seen as a move forward, albeit snail-paced, as the OPS group has been cold so far as responding to the EPS camp forming its talk team goes. Earlier, on Tuesday, four months after the demise of J Jayalalithaa, the AIADMK decided to save the party from the clutches of “one family” by booting out party general secretary V.K. Sasikala and her nephew and deputy general secretary TTV Dhinakaran from the party, effectively meeting the major demand of former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam.