Even as the Edappadi Palaniswami-led AIADMK Government is struggling for its survival in office because of the demand by many party MlAs for a change in leadership, the senior most party leader has come out with a suggestion to convene the legislature party meeting at the earliest. Meanwhile senior BJP leader and MP Subramanian Swamy asked Palaniswami to quit as Chief Minister because the latter has lost support of the majority of the AIADMK MlAs.
S Semmalai, a five-time MlA, a close confidant of party founder late MG Ramachandran, told The Pioneer that there were some genuine problems in the party which need to be addressed immediately. “The legislature party meeting is the ideal solution to address these issues. The Chief Minister himself can convene the meeting and I am sure all MlAs would attend the meeting,” said Semmalai, who was the pro-term Speaker of the present legislature assembly in his capacity as the senior most AIADMK leader in the House.
In an interesting development, Subramanian Swamy MP and senior BJP leader asked Palaniswamy to resign and Chief Minister and make way for someone who is nominated by Sasikala. “Dinakaran has proved that he is capable of bringing down the Palaniswamy Government any time. Palaniswamy has left the moral right to be the Chief Minister as most of the AIADMK MlAs are with Dinakaran. If the Government falls down now, the DMK is sure to come back to power which is disastrous for Tamil Nadu. Hence Palaniswamy should quit as Chief Minister, meet Sasikala and ask her to nominate someone else as Chief Minister. Palaniswamy and Panneerselvam would not be able to carry the AIADMK cadre by side lining Sasikala and Dinakaran because the party cadre is with them,” Swamy told The Pioneer.
Semmalai, who is respected by all factions of the AIADMK, said he himself would take the initiatives to make the MlAs attend the legislature party meeting. “What is going on right now in the AIADMK is not fair and proper. We should not create an impression that we are letting down the hopes and dreams of the party cadre. We should respect the memories of party founder MGR and Jayalalithaa by working unitedly,” said Semmalali who had served as Minister for education and health in the Jayalalithaa cabinet.
He was confident of resolving all issues in the party if the AIADMK MlAs sit together and hold a free discussion. “All the issues could be sorted out by open discussion. The legislature party meeting is the ideal option for it,” said Semmalali. It may be remembered that Semmalai was with the Sasikala camp of the party when O Panneerselvam revolted against the leadership in last February. When all the MlAs owing allegiance to Sasikala were ferried to the resort in Koovathur to prevent them from being poached by the Panneerselvam camp, Semmalai told the leadership that he wanted to interact with the voters in his constituency before taking part in the trust vote.
He held discussions with the party cadre in his constituency and decided to cast his lot with the Panneerselvam camp knowing well that the latter would not win against the Sasikala camp. But semmalai was disappointed when he was not inducted in the Palaniswamy ministry after the unification between OPS and EPS. He made his disappointment known to all by openly announcing that he felt let down by the party leadership.
Thanga Tamil Chelvan, MlA and one of the leaders of the Sasikala camp said he too was open to the legislature party meeting of the AIADMK. “But the question is whether Palaniswamy would be willing to convene such a meeting because he knows very well that he has no majority in the legislature party. We are firm in our demand that Palaniswamy should go,” Tamil Chelvan told this newspaper.
He also said once Palaniswamy and three ministers from the cabinet are removed the issues too would die.
