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Sasikala's conversion to Chinamma: What is she waiting for?

  • There is much drama in Tamil Nadu regarding Sasikala's appointment as CM. 
  • The AIADMK is making a big show of having to 'convince' her to take up the post. 
  • But in reality, it seems she is simply waiting for an auspicious time. 
Sasikalas coronation only awaiting an auspicious time

It cannot be a case of oversight that M Thambi Durai did not notice that the four-page press release issued by him was printed on his letterhead as Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha. It was beneath the Government of India emblem that Thambi Durai decided to showcase his loyalty to VK Sasikala, the newly appointed general secretary of the AIADMK.

 

Perhaps his intention was to emphasise his status as a party heavyweight when he asked for Sasikala to take over as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu. The fig leaf used was that the same person should head both the party and the government.

 

Read More: AIADMK's battle for 'Jaya's heir' intensifies, Deepa gets more support

 

Thambi Durai is in the long list of AIADMK leaders who have been tasked with appealing to the new presiding deity at Poes Garden to take over the reins of the state. Several ministers at different fora have already passed resolutions asking Sasikala to enter Fort St George, the seat of the Tamil Nadu Secretariat. The intention is to make Sasikala appear a reluctant leader who has to be coaxed to wield power. Sources in the AIADMK say it is almost certain that she will become CM sometime around Pongal, depending on the date decided by the astrologer. 


O Panneerselvam is not expected to show resistance because he knows he has the support of only one legislator: O Panneerselvam. And the fact that his own ministers are openly asking for his removal shows they do not think much of Panneerselvam's self-respect. The CM's position has been undermined, and his authority eroded.

 

Read More: Reading between the lines: What Sasikala's elevation means for Tamil Nadu?

 

By now, even Tamil Nadu is convinced that Panneerselvam does not have it in him to be a leader. In the banners welcoming Sasikala on December 31, when she arrived at the AIADMK office to take over as party chief, Panneerselvam described himself as 'Treasurer of the AIADMK' and not as the chief minister. It went on to poetically say "The sister who was not born with Amma, who worked hard, like how a candle melts and protected Amma and the party, I fall at your feet to welcome you."


The Sasikala camp makes light of reports that the cadre is not happy with the new leader. 


"Everyone expected the party to splinter as it did after MGR's death in 1987. What is being highlighted is only the 1 percent disgruntled cadre whereas 99 percent of the AIADMK is happy with Chinnamma," says an AIADMK leader. The party also points out that at this point in time, leaders are important. "The cadre is important only at the time of elections," says a leader, close to the Sasikala family. 

 

Watch: The power of Chinnamma after Amma

 

 

The earlier thinking was that Sasikala will take over from Panneerselvam only after the verdict in the Disproportionate Assets case in which she is Accused number 2, is delivered. But now her camp thinks that as chief minister, her chances of acquittal will brighten. 


After her speech on Saturday, comparisons have also been drawn between Jayalalithaa and Sasikala's style of leadership. Party insiders say Jayalalithaa's approach was to challenge opponents. She would throw ministers out of the cabinet with no explanations given, running the party like a military unit. Sasikala in contrast, in her speech, spoke about how the party under her "will not disturb opponents but tackle them appropriately". 


There have been apprehensions over how the BJP is likely to react to these developments in the AIADMK. The IT raids last month on the former chief secretary and some politically influential contractors were seen as a message to the AIADMK. But the fact that Sasikala decided to become general secretary was proof that the AIADMK wanted to tell the BJP not to poke its nose into its party affairs. Sources say even though the BJP would be comfortable with a Panneerselvam in government and Sasikala in party arrangement; the Sasikala camp has reached out to Delhi as well. 

 

Read More: Sasikala beats odds to become AIADMK chief, but dangers lurk

 

"The transfer of power from Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam and now Sasikala becoming general secretary were done with BJP in the loop. Sasikala becoming CM would also be done with Delhi in the know," says a Sasikala camp follower. 


Sasikala will then have six months to get elected to the Tamil Nadu assembly. Though RK Nagar assembly constituency, vacant after Jayalalithaa's demise, will be an obvious seat to fight from, an urban pocket in Chennai could be a dicey proposition. Sasikala could opt to fight from a Thevar community stronghold seat in southern Tamil Nadu by asking a legislator to quit for her. 


Even before Jayalalithaa's first month death anniversary, Sasikala has consolidated herself in the corridors of power in Chennai. Posters and banners, an adulatory filmy beat anthem, souvenirs are visual evidence that AIADMK's Chinnamma has arrived. 

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