CHENNAI: Former Chief Minister and expelled leader of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), O Panneerselvam (OPS), joined the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in the presence of party president and Chief Minister MK Stalin.
Panneerselvam, who was once described as “Patchai Tamilar” by late Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, formally aligned with the ruling party after being expelled from the AIADMK.
Following his ouster, the soft-spoken leader had floated the AIADMK Puratchi Thalaivi Amma (Retrieval) Kazhagam, but his efforts to reclaim control of the party did not succeed.
Sources said that after several rounds of informal talks with the DMK leadership, the leader decided to join the ruling party.
Panneerselvam began his political career as Chairman of Periyakulam Municipality in 1996 and served till 2001. In 2001, he was elected as an AIADMK MLA from the Periyakulam Assembly constituency and became Revenue Minister in the government led by J Jayalalithaa.
When Jayalalithaa was barred from holding office following her conviction in the TANSI land case, she nominated Panneerselvam as Chief Minister.
He first assumed office on September 21, 2001, and served until March 1, 2002, before stepping down after her conviction was set aside. During that tenure, he was often described as a loyalist who held the post in trust for his leader.
He again became Chief Minister on September 27, 2014, when Jayalalithaa was convicted in the disproportionate assets case. After her acquittal in 2015, he stepped aside. Following her death in December 2016, Panneerselvam was sworn in as Chief Minister for the third time.
However, amid political turmoil and the rise of V K Sasikala, he resigned and later launched a “Dharmayuddham” at Jayalalithaa’s memorial. Subsequently, he served as Deputy Chief Minister in the AIADMK government led by Edappadi K Palaniswami and functioned as the party’s coordinator before being removed following internal differences.