Former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Friday urged the Central government to appoint a commission of inquiry to investigate the death of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.
Speaking to mediapersons after launching public meetings and welfare measures to mark the birth anniversary of Jayalalithaa in R.K. Nagar, Mr. Panneerselvam said the preliminary work on appointing a commission of inquiry started during his tenure as Chief Minister.
“The situation has changed now. But the government has the responsibility to clear the doubts of the people. She is a tall leader. She was the Chief Minister of the State.”
Urging the State government to facilitate such a commission of inquiry, Mr. Panneerselvam said “all the 1.5 crore party cadre of AIADMK and 7.5 crore people of Tamil Nadu have been requesting for an answer.”
“If they are really concerned about Amma, if they have loyalty and affection for Amma, they should facilitate the appointment of the commission of inquiry by the Central government. People will have to get an answer. Their doubts have to be cleared,” said Mr. Panneerselvam.
Reiterating the importance of social welfare schemes, Mr. Paneerselvam said the next government will implement such schemes based on the vision of former chief minister Jayalalithaa.
Condemns Speaker
Claiming that the current government will see its downfall soon, Mr. Panneerselvam said the decision of the Speaker of the Assembly relating to the vote of confidence was against democratic values.
Pointing to previous instances of secret ballot in various states, Mr. Panneerselvam said he also condemned the decision of the Speaker to evict the DMK members before the vote of confidence.
Inviting Ms. Deepa Jayakumar to join his battle for justice, Mr. Panneerselvam said the people will prove that they are with the AIADMK. “History shows that AIADMK has always been against the dominance of any single family. We are the real members of the AIADMK. Those expelled from the party by Amma cannot dictate terms to the cadre. All of us know that Amma expelled all the members of that family, including Sasikala, in 2011. Only Sasikala was permitted back in her home again. Those people who were expelled were not reinstated by Amma. People will make a decision, based on the idea of Amma, who did not want a family to dominate the party cadre,” said Mr. Panneerselvam.
