Edappadi K Palaniswami made AIADMK general secretary

Chennai: Within moments of the Madras High Court passing a verdict favourable to Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) on the leadership issue involving rival O Panneerselvam (OPS), the former Tamil Nadu chief minister was on Tuesday elevated as the AIADMK's general secretary, taking over complete control of the decades-old organisation.

Soon after the High Court rejected all petitions filed by the deposed OPS and his aides against the resolutions of the July 11, 2022 party general council and the conduct of the general secretary election, the 68-year-old interim general secretary was announced elected unanimously to the top post at the party headquarters by the election authorities concerned.

EPS thanked his supporters for his elevation. Many jubilant leaders of the main opposition party said his elevation would enable him to steer the AIADMK towards better days.

The July 11, 2022 meeting of the AIADMK general council, the party's highest decision-making body. had expelled Panneerselvam and his aides for alleged anti-party activities in the wake of the leadership battle involving the two leaders.

The Salem strongman's supporters had backed him for the 'single leader' post, even as the party was previously led by Pannnerselvam and Palaniswami as the coordinator and joint coordinator, respectively, then.

The posts were created in 2017 after the then-rival leaders merged their respective factions.

AIADMK was founded in 1972 by the charismatic actor-politician, the late chief minister M G Ramachandran (MGR), also the first general secretary of the party. The late CM J Jayalalithaa helmed the party from its top post from 1989 to 2016 till her death.

Jayalalithaa's close aide VK Sasikala was elected as the party's interim general secretary after the former's death but she was later convicted and sentenced to four years in jail in a graft case.

Incidentally, since its inception, the party has had MGR, VR Nedunchizhian, P U Shanmugam, S Ragavanandam and Jayalalithaa as general secretaries at different points in time.

Later in the day, EPS paid floral tributes at the memorials of MGR and Jayalalithaa at the Marina beachfront here.

(With PTI inputs)