Dhinakaran’s appointments rubbished, AIADMK mins allege he is an "outsider"
- Yesterday, TTV Dhinakaran had said that there was no one who could stop him from entering the AIADMK headquarters.
- AIADMK leaders rubbish his appointments, saying that his position in the party itself is not clear.
- Finance minister D Jayakumar said that the issue of Sasikala as general secretary is itself a question mark. So, her appointments too are dubious.
FollowYesterday's political drama in Tamil Nadu, where TTV Dhinakaran claimed that no one could stop him from entering the AIADMK headquarters and that he has appointed ministers in the cabinet because he had every right to do so, irked the senior ministers in the party. The ministers under Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami’s camp claimed Dhinakaran could not take the decisions because his position in the party as the 'deputy general secretary' is not clear in the first place. In fact, the Election Commission is yet to clear the appointment of his aunt V.K. Sasikala as the AIADMK general secretary.
She had announced him as deputy general secretary with powers to take all party decisions just before leaving for Bengaluru to begin her jail term in the disproportionate assets case. Speaking to the reporters, finance minister D Jayakumar said, "When the issue of Sasikala as general secretary is itself a question mark, these appointments (made by Dhinakaran) will also be question marks." He further said, "It amounts to making a mockery of the process of making appointments to party posts and it will create confusion."
Dhinakaran's decision also drew criticism from his supporters. For instance, Revenue Minister R B Udhayakumar who hailed Sasikala's leadership after Jayalalithaa, also said that Dhinakaran had no authority making these appointments. The minister further went ahead and said that the claims made by Dhinakaran only reflected his failure in getting the support of his party members. He said, "No one approves these appointments as the ministers were already functioning efficiently."Two other MLAs in the TTV list among the 60 appointees also turnd down the posts offered by him. K. Palani (Sriperumbudur) and Sathya Panneerselvam (Panruti) were appointed the secretaries of party forum 'Amma Peravai,' and women's wing, respectively. Sathya said, "I am happy to function under Annan EPS leadership. The CM has done many good things for my constituency. I did not seek any post from TTV."Palani too corroborated, saying that he was happy working under the CM.
Meanwhile, Dhinakaran loyalist and former minister P Palaniappan said, "We spoke with legislators Palani and Sathya Panneerselvam and took their concurrence. Their change in stand is regrettable." Insisting that TTV had no authority in making appointments, former minister under the OPS faction said Dhinakaran is an outsider who had been expelled from the party by Jayalalithaa.
