Chennai: In a bid to counter the moves of V K Sasikala, who is mobilizing the AIADMK cadre to rally around her, mandarins of the party are going into a huddle on Sunday to discuss the future strategy to be adopted by them.
The meeting, scheduled for 4 pm at the party headquarters in Lloyds Road, will be attended by the top brass, including the two head honchos O Panneerselvam and Edappadi K Palaniswami, besides MPs, MLAs and district secretaries.
One of the major items in the agenda is on cracking down on party functionaries who keep in touch with Sasikala and her supporters who might join her when she visits to the samadhis of M G Ramachandran (MGR) and J Jayalalithaa on October 16, the day prior to the official celebrations of the party entering the 50th year.
Since Sasikala has been using the erstwhile mouthpiece of the AIADMK, Dr Namathu MGR, reach out to the cadre continuously – on Saturday she said ‘no force can stop her’ – through a series of short write ups, signed as ‘Thyagathalavi Chinnamaa’ (Martyr Leader Chinnamma), the meeting will also mull over the question of replying to her or not.
Though the AIADMK started its own newspaper, 'Nammadu Puratchi Thalavi Amma,' after the original party organ went into the hands of the family members of Sasikala, who had been using it to promote AMMK, the party launched by T T V Dinakaran, Sasikala's statements were being read by the original followers of Jayalalithaa and MGR.
In the latest statement, she swears by the name of Jayalalithaa and says that her journey was on the path laid down by Jayalalithaa and that anyone crossing the path will be identified by the AIADMK, suggesting that she is in charge of the party.
Jayalalithaa’s dreams and the fire in her heart should be with the cadre and the dream should be realized at any cost, Sasikala said, adding that no force can stop her from doing it, she has averred.
So the present leaders of the AIADMK, most of whom are averse to the idea of letting Sasikala into the fold, will have to come up with a strategy to counter her moves and also make their celebrations related to the 50th year into a show of strength.
The leaders bank on the possibility of the AIADMK winning substantially in the rural body elections to prove their point that the present leadership only enjoys the support of the people and that the people are not missing Sasikala’s authority in the party in any way.
Sunday’s meeting is also expected to discuss ways to make the 50th year celebrations a success, circumventing Covid-19 protocols that prohibit large gatherings. The leaders want the celebrations to be held all over the State with the crowds limited to the permissible numbers.
Sasikala camp, too, is drawing up a plan to have their parallel celebration the previous day in a similar fashion but to turn it into a clear show of strength, which should impel the present leaders to accede to her demands.
