The AIADMK – the force that balances the opposition party in Tamil Nadu and the ruling DMK in the state – is in the grip of an internal power struggle that broke out in the open with calls for a single leadership for the party.
A proclamation by spokesperson D Jayakumar at a press meeting after a meeting of key office bearers last week, was the first indication of the escalation of the crisis. He secretly said that there are some voices demanding a “single leadership” for the party.
The cat was out of the bag.
“We want single leadership” is now a recurring chorus outside HQ. The slogans were first raised by Edappadi K Palaniswami loyalists and were followed by the OPS camp demanding “unified leadership”.
Since then, the noise has intensified for the EPS as the leader of the party and to counter it, O Panneerselvam loyalists put up posters claiming that the OPS is the leader chosen by the late AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa.
numbers are against ops
Rebellion is nothing new for Ops. He famously rebelled against the reins of the party going to the family of VK Sasikala In February 2017. Even after being jailed to serve a sentence in a disproportionate assets case, 11 MLAs joined his camp while Sasikala tried to keep the herd together.
Now, there are even less takers of the Ops rebellion. Only the old-fashioned JCD Prabhakaran and Manoj Pandian still stand by him. It is worth mentioning that former loyalists K Pandiarajan and V Maitreyan visited Edappadi Palaniswami and expressed solidarity with his leadership.
With less MP support and less support on the ground, the OPS took the legal route to stall a crucial meeting on Thursday at which EPS was elected the party’s number one leader. However, the Madras High Court refused to stay the meeting on Wednesday. But giving some relief to the OPS, the Chief Justice of the HC said that the meeting of the General Council can be held on Thursday, only 23 draft resolutions can be passed. Other resolutions (single lead) can be discussed but not passed.
root of the problem
While it’s clear that the stars of Ops are running out, the question still remains: why is the issue of single leadership now so common?
Why does the EPS, which has gathered so much power within the party, want to oust the OPS, which is already satisfied with a small role within the party?
Insiders move for two reasons: BJP emerging as strong opposition And the AIADMK wants to defend its turf. Having two power centers in opposition is a death knell in itself. For many issues, the AIADMK appeared lax in controlling the narrative – even when the DMK government appeared to be on a weak wicket. Insiders say EPS wanted to change that and take control.
Recently the patience of EPS broke due to the demand of OPS Rajya Sabha One of the two seats in the election should be given to his loyalists. He said, ‘The war of ego is going on between the two leaders for some time. There have been differences of opinion between the two and there has been a delay in taking a decision by the party,” said a senior leader on conditions of anonymity.
EPS wanted to give Rajya Sabha seats to two of its loyalists – CV Shanmugam and D Jayakumar. Ops refused to budge and wanted to keep one for his loyalists. This is when the supporters of the EPS decided that it was time to sideline the OPS and call for a unified leader.
Why is the OPs command supported so little?
O Panneerselvam is facing an existential crisis. Many of his loyalists, including senior leader V Maitreyan, have jumped into the EPS camp. Ma Foi’s Pandiarajan is one of them. “OPS has lost credibility. I was one of those who supported him during the crusade in February 2017. But he was selfish and did not recognize the efforts of those loyal to him, including me. His image is now tarnished and the time has come to keep EPS as the leader of the party,” he told News18.
VK Sasikala, who has repeatedly reiterated that she is the rightful heir to the AIADMK, is watching the developments keenly. The Palaniswami camp wants to put an end to the speculation of his rejoining the party and says that only promotion to EPS will put an end to it.
what next?
D-Day is here, June 23. The AIADMK is set to pass 23 resolutions, and it is clear that the EPS will emerge as the undisputed leader of the party in some form or the other. Such an event would be a big setback for OPS. It is only a year since the party decided to retain the dual leadership (OPS and EPS) structure created after Jayalalithaa’s death.
If all goes well for the EPS, he may till today put himself in a position of absolute power within the AIADMK. For Ops, the options to turn this crisis in their favor are literally running out. Does he have a Brahmastra?
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