Sasikala will decide party stand on Prez poll: TTV Dinakaran

With the BJP having announced Ram Nath Kovind as its candidate, it is likely that both AIADMK (A) and AIADMK (PTA) led by former chief minister O Paneerselvam will support the BJP candidate. 

TN MPs and MLAs will vote on July 17 to decide on the successor to incumbent Pranab Mukherjee. Back home, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy, who has been facing one embarrassment after another at the legislative assembly with several of his party MLAs walking out of the session (Karunas, Thaniarasu and Thamimun Ansari walked out on Tuesaday while Thanga Tamilselvan staged a walkout on Monday) received yet another jolt from Dinakaran on Monday evening when the latter announced in no uncertain terms that he would enter active politics after the 60-day period of abstinence ended as requested by Sasikala. 

He further stated, “As deputy general secretary I have the power to remove ministers,” in an obvious reply to Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar’s earlier statement to the media on keeping Sasikala’s family out of politics. 

It may be recalled that Dinakaran had announced that he was stepping aside when the OPS faction demanded that as one of the conditions for factions merger. But after his release from Bengaluru jail in the EC bribery attempt case and lying low for some days, Dinakaran openly announced, “nobody can remove me as I was nominated by the general secretary and in her absence, I can exercise her powers.”