Meet the 7 chief players in the Tamil Nadu political drama
Synopsis
Amma’s death on December 5, 2016 opened up a big sinkhole in Tamil Nadu politics. Honourable Governor C Vidyasagar Rao's refusal to come to Chennai has left Tamil Nadu without a leader
Jayalalithaa
Amma’s death on December 5, 2016 opened a big sinkhole in Tamil Nadu politics. Jayalalithaa’s death due to cardiac arrest, left the AIADMK party rudderless. Party cadres threw in two names – O Panneerselvam for Chief Minister and Sasikala or Chinnamma for AIADMK Party Secretary. All was well, until February 5 when OPS announced his resignation as Chief Minister and Sasikala said she has been asked by the party to become the new Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. A day later, after meditating in front of Jaya’s Marina Beach memorial, OPS says he had been forced to resign and Amma’s spirit had told him to reveal the truth about Sasikala. Chinnamma immediately took offence and declared him traitor and rebel and thus was born the story of OPS vs Sasikala.
O Panneerselvam
The man who became Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu thrice, on the behest of J Jayalalithaa. Twice the CM seat fell vacant temporarily, he was asked to assume the role, then when Amma came back he was back to being a loyal party member. After December 5, 2016 Amma never came back. He once again assumed the role of acting CM but this time within 2 months he was unceremoniously asked to leave the CM throne in favour of Sasikala. He agreed, announced his resignation, sought the blessings of his mentor Jaya and then came back with a bang, saying the whole political drama was orchestrated and that he was forced to resign. He also opened up a can of worms when he said there must be a probe into Jaya’s death and that he was willing to contest Sasikala for the position. Tough claims, now party support will decide the whole story ahead.
Sasikala
Or Chinnamma as her party cadres address her, came out of the shadows post her friend Jayalalithaa’s death. The AIADMK called her to become party General Secretary, she became; then the party elected her as Legislative Party Chief, and now her story of becoming Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu was just falling into place when suddenly the voices of dissent interrupted her clear run. First, the threat of the Disproportionate Assets Case and FERA cases emerged, then Panneerselvam said he was forced to resign from post of Tamil Nadu CM and now she has to prove that she commands a majority of the votes in the House. She also has to answer how she became AIADMK ‘s interim General Secretary when such a post does not exist in the Party’s Constitution.
Deepa Jayakumar
A complete novice in politics. Her claim to fame is that she is Jayalalithaa’s niece. The one who was refused to entry to see her aunt in the hospital. She says she is the rightful claimant to the legacy of Jayalalithaa and that the people of Tamil Nadu want her to be their leader. She even floated a political party in this regard. Sasikala does not think of her as much of a threat, other than just another dissenting voice. OPS, meanwhile, is being backed by Deepa. Deepa says Jayalalithaa never appointed anyone as party secretary, so Sasikala does not have any claim to the party post.
Governor Vidyasagar Rao
C Vidyasagar Rao, Honourable Governor has an additional charge of Tamil Nadu. He was expected to be in the state to conduct the now-delayed swearing in of Sasikala. Apparently, he is now the man of the hour. He is sitting in Mumbai. Governor Rao seems to have postponed his trip to Chennai indefinitely. Some say the Centre is holding him back, some say he is waiting for the SC clean chit on Sasikala and some say he is undecided about the whole thing and may just impose President’s Rule. His no-show has left Tamil Nadu leaderless.
PH Pandiyan
AIADMK veteran leader PH Pandian has alleged that Jayalalithaa’s death was not natural. He claimed she was pushed to death. His allegation comes soon after Dr Richard Beale ruled out any conspiracy and said Jayalalithaa died of multi-organ failure. His statements have just added fuel to the fire and he is also miffed by Sasikala’s elevation as General Secretary and her being now on the path to Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. He has said, “Sasikala has cheated us (AIADMK members) and wants to be the chief minister. We will not let that happen.”
Stalin
He’s a member of the Opposition party, DMK. But why is he in the picture? Sasikala has claimed that O Panneerselvam is being influenced by DMK into revolting and that DMK chief Karunanidhi’s son, wants her out of the picture. Stalin, meanwhile, is supporting O Panneerselvam’s claims. He is definitely not happy with Sasikala as CM and is unhappy with the way laws are being flouted.