Chennai: Revving up politically, former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, who had been lying low ever since the court restrained him from using the AIADMK flag, name and symbol, launched a virulent attack on his beta noir and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami, accusing him of striking a secret deal with the DMK and thus going against the founding principles of the party.
Besides calling his followers to attend the birth anniversary celebrations of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on February when he would be paying floral tributes to her statue inside the department of higher education premises at 10.30 am, he said the AIADMK was founded by M G Ramachandran to fight the DMK and was nourished with same political spirit by Jayalalithaa.
However, Palaniswami had joined hands with the DMK, he said and referred to the AIADMK general secretary’s volte face on the ‘One Nation, One Election’ plank as a case in point. Recalling Palaniswami’s propaganda during the 2022 elections to the local bodies in the State, he said Palaniswami had averred then that the ‘one nation, one election’ would come to force in 2024, which was just 27 New Moons away, and oust the DMK government, ushering in a new dispensation.
Now, he was backing the DMK in its opposition to the ‘one nation, one election’ proposal and helped the passing of the Assembly resolution against it with the AIADMK member Thalavai Sundaram talking about the ‘one nation, one election’ idea possibly implemented in 2034, Panneerselvam said.
From the earlier prediction of ‘one nation, one election’ becoming a reality after ‘27 New Moons,’ Palaniswami had put it off to 2034 which was 10 year away, he said, adding that Palaniswami was taking the AIADMK down the slope providing no scope to realize the dream of Jayalalithaa to keep the party alive for the next 100 year.
Some leaders in the AIADMK say that Panneerselvam was emboldened to hit out at the party, with a dream of capturing it, by the recognition he had gained from the BJP, which had reportedly agreed to include his group in the NDA.
In ‘party’ meetings organized by Panneerselvam, the workers are encouraged to turn up in dhotis with ‘black, white and red’ border, the signature colours of the AIADMK, and also fly the 'black and white with white image of C N Annadurai' flags in their vehicles. The ban on using those colours was only for Panneeerselvam and not for the party members, it is being reasoned out by his followers, who are hopeful of regaining the party.
It is learnt that Panneerselvam, with the help of the BJP, was hopeful of legally getting control of the party and to keep his flock intact till then, he is trying to pretend to be the real inheritor of the MGR/Jayalalithaa legacy and as the only leader capable of spearheading an opposition to the DMK.
Another development that had come handy for Panneerselvam to beat the AIADMK with was Chief Minister M K Stalin urging the Speaker to favourably consider Palaniswami’s demand for the change in seat for the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly and the Speaker, who had been refusing to change it for a long time, immediately acceding to the demand.
Now Paneerselvam, who has lost his seat in the front row, is accusing the DMK and AIADMK of entering into a secret pact because the Chief Minister had openly taken up the cause of the AIADMK with the Speaker, over which even some AIADMK leaders are feeling embarrassed now.
