With the conviction and sentencing of Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the next big question is who will succeed her.
Party sources say it could take a day or two before the succession issue is resolved.
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State Finance Minister O. Panneerselvam is among the top contenders for the post. He was placed in a similar crisis situation in September 2001 when Chief Minister Jayalalithaa chose him to replace her after the Supreme Court declared her appointment as “not legal and valid”. For six months he was the Chief Minister till she returned in March 2012. From a humble tea-stall owner, he has had a meteoric rise in politics.
Another top contender is Dr. Visalakshi Nedunchezhian, the widow of former finance minister V.R. Nedunchezhian, who was touted as the Chief Minister after DMK founder C.N. Annadurai’s death in 1969. A gynaecologist by training, she was Dean of the Government Kasturba Gandhi Hospital in Triplicane. She stayed away from politics while her husband was alive, but joined the AIADMK after his death in 2000.
A native of Mannargudi and staunch Jayalalithaa loyalist, former State advocate-general A. Navaneethakrishnan is also in the running. Edappadi K. Palanisamy is the latest name doing the rounds. Number five in the present cabinet, he is the Minister for Highways and Minor Ports.
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