A major rift has emerged in the AIADMK over the choice of the Leader of the Opposition. The newly elected members of the Legislative Assembly had to go back from the party headquarters without electing the LoP due
to differences between Edappadi Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam, the two senior-most leader of the party.
While the supporters of Palaniswami wanted him to be the LoP, the camp followers of Panneerselvam argued that the latter was the ideal choice for the post. Sources said both leaders also had a heated argument before the meeting was called off.
Palaniswamy and his followers claim that the party could retain a respectable figure in the new assembly because of the hard work put up by him. They claim that the AIADMK made a clean sweep in South West districts of Tamil Nadu, home to Vellala Gounder, the community to which Palaniswamy belongs.
But the supporters of Panneerselvam argue that the failure of Palaniswamy to accommodate TTV Dhinakaran and his Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhakam (AMMK) led to the AIADMK losing 21 seats in southern seat. “Had the AMMK been with us, we would have been richer by 20 or more seats,” said a leader who was present during the meeting.
Govindarajan Satyamurthi, a political commentator who has an in-depth knowledge of the functioning of the AIADMK, says the end is near for the party. “The AIADMK will soon disintegrate. But I cannot tell you the exact date. The leaders are enchanted with power and wealth and the perks associated with the position of the leader of opposition,” said Satyamurthi who is leading a retired life at Coimbatore.
Gokula Indira, former Rajya Sabha member and a minister in Jayalalithaa’s Cabinet refuted all such prophets of doom and said that the party would come back with renewed vigour.
“AIADMK deserved to win this time as there was no anti-incumbency factor against Palaniswamy or the Government. I myself had campaigned as a candidate in Anna Nagar, a Chennai suburb where people had turned up in large numbers to greet us. But the result was disappointing,” Indira told The Pioneer.
She said there was not even any remote chance of a split in the AIADMK. “Our cadres are wise enough to know that the party is a gift to the people of Tamil Nadu from Amma (Jayalalithaa). If only we keep Amma’s memories alive, the AIADMK would remain as a force,” said Indira who is confident of the party surviving any crisis.
Though the leadership had convened another meeting of the legislature party for Monday, the fate of that meeting hangs in balance as the State Government by a special order on Saturday declared full lockdown of Tamil Nadu from May 10 for two weeks.
In another development, there was a showdown between the two factions at Jayalalithaa Memorial late on Friday where the leaders went to pay their respect to Amma. “It ended in slogans being raised in support of the respective leaders while all forgot the sanctity of the memorial,” said a former MLA who stood in silence watching the proceedings.