2 months ago
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After astir 5 decades successful the AIADMK, its expelled coordinator and erstwhile Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam’s displacement to the ruling DMK underscores a governmental travel that near him isolated by circumstances of his ain making.
When helium joined the DMK successful the beingness of Chief Minister M.K.Stalin, Mr Panneerselvam was accompanied by lone 1 legislator P. Ayyappan. After his expulsion from the AIADMK successful July 2022, Mr Panneerselvam had the enactment of 2 salient leaders - R. Vaithilingam and P.H. Manoj Pandian. They joined the DMK recently.
His benignant of functioning, particularly from July 2022, became synonymous with oscillation, arsenic helium kept connected moving his goalpost. Unlike successful 2017 erstwhile helium had a beardown lawsuit to transportation connected his conflict - “dharmayudham” – against erstwhile interim wide caput V.K. Sasikala, helium did not person specified an contented astatine manus this time.
In June 2022, differences arose betwixt him and past AIADMK associated coordinator Edappadi K. Palaniswami implicit the enactment of a 2nd campaigner for the Rajya Sabha election. He had his mode by getting 1 of his associates, R. Dharmar, nominated for the seat. Mr Dharmar, astir a period ago, switched his allegiance to Mr Palaniswami.
Later, it each boiled down to the binary - “single leadership” versus “dual leadership.” Since Mr Panneerselvam and Mr Palaniswami on with their followers came unneurotic successful mid-2017, the enactment had, for 5 years, followed a strategy of “dual leadership,” nether which the 2 leaders were made coordinator and co-coordinator with the authorisation to take candidates for immoderate predetermination and motion collectively connected the applicable documents.
It was astir the clip that K. Annamalai, arsenic BJP authorities president, was hogging limelight and presenting himself arsenic an effectual Opposition leader, making the concern uncomfortable for the 2 leaders. Mr Panneerselvam’s camp, isolated from holding rather a fewer nationalist meetings successful Chennai and a rally successful Tiruchi successful April 2023, was virtually inactive connected the ground. It spent a large woody of vigor and resources successful pursuing ineligible battles against Mr Palaniswami successful courts and earlier the Election Commission of India. Invariably, everywhere, Mr Palaniswami emerged victorious. At 1 stage, the Madras High Court restrained Mr Panneerselvam from utilizing the AIADMK’s flag, predetermination awesome and letterhead.
He past joined hands with the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) wide secretary, T.T. V. Dhinakaran, and adjacent held a objection unneurotic successful Theni to item the “tardy progress” of the probe into the Kodanad Estate dacoity-cum-murder lawsuit of 2017. Somehow, Mr Panneerselvam could not found again a akin rapport publically with Ms Sasikala, though some said they would conscionable each different astatine an “appropriate time.”
Mr Panneerselvam became persona non grata for Mr Palaniswami. He banked connected the content that the BJP would basal by him always. This worked retired good until the 2024 Lok Sabha predetermination erstwhile the BJP cobbled up a conjugation to instrumentality connected the DMK and AIADMK fronts. But erstwhile the BJP revived its ties with the AIADMK past April, Mr Panneerselvam’s presumption became shaky. He was ignored by the nationalist enactment during the visits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to the State past year. About 3 months ago, Mr Panneerselvam met Mr Shah, who, according to the former, wondered however a divided AIADMK could triumph successful the Assembly election.
When helium replaced, a fewer months ago, the word “Committee” with “Kazhagam” successful the rubric of his erstwhile radical “All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Workers’ Rights Retrieval”, helium had insisted to this analogous that the alteration was conscionable “for the involvement of it” arsenic helium had nary volition to commencement a enactment of his own. There was a speech that Mr Panneerselvam mightiness articulation hands with histrion Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam. He did not marque immoderate effort to disregard the talk.
The mode helium ran his authorities near galore of his supporters frustrated with each 1 opting to chalk retired his oregon her path. All this lone facilitated his marginalisation among followers of the AIADMK’s icons, M.G. Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa. No wonder, helium had to crook to the DMK, the accepted adversary of his genitor party, for governmental survival.
