Congress MP Su. Thirunavukkarasar on Monday said the demand for unitary leadership in the AIADMK was fair and justified.
“No party at the all-India or regional level functions with dual leadership. You cannot ride two horses at the same time,” Mr. Thirunavukkarasar, a former AIADMK Minister, told reporters in Tiruchi, when asked about the developments in the principal Opposition party.
He said that as someone who was a member of the AIADMK under its founder M.G. Ramachandran and former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, and had been a politician for nearly 50 years, it was his opinion that a leader who was favoured by the AIADMK cadre and representatives could be elected to head that party. He, however, said he did not wish to be drawn into naming former Chief Ministers Edappadi K. Palaniswami or O. Panneerselvam or Jayalalithaa’s aide V.K. Sasikala to lead the party.
Mr. Thirunavukkarasar felt the AIADMK, under a unitary leadership, could function as a strong Opposition party. The ruling party and a strong Opposition party were two sides of the same coin, and were required for a vibrant democracy, he said. “If the AIADMK were to function in a united manner and as a strong Opposition party, it should have one leader. The AIADMK should find a solution to the ongoing leadership tussle in a democratic way, and that is my free advice to the party,” he said.
