Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao on Thursday invited AIADMK legislature party leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami to form the government in Tamil Nadu. A statement from the Raj Bhavan said, "Hon'be Governor has requested the Chief Minister-designate, Thiru Edappadi K. Palaniswami to seek the vote of confidence of the Assembly within 15 days."
The Governor’s invitation came "in acceptance" of the letter submitted by Mr. Palaniswami on February 14.
The updates:
4.40 p.m.: The Governor has arrived at the venue to administer the oath of office. The national anthem is being played now.
4.30 p.m.: Now all set for Edappadi Palaniswami to take oath. The Chief Minister-designate and his council of Ministers are waiting for Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao to administer the oath of office.
3.50 p.m.: Eight Lok Sabha and two Rajya Sabha MPs of AIADMK met EC to submit that Sasikala's appointment as interim general secretary of the party was illegal. The MPs also requested the EC not to allot the party symbol to Sasikala faction. Accompanied by other party members, the delegation of MPs said the appointment of deputy general secretary was also illegal as per the party constitution.
AIADMK delegation led by Dr V Maitreyan comes out after meeting the Election Commission in New Delhi on Thursday.
3.15 p.m: Edappadi Palaniswami to head 31-member Ministry.
All members of outgoing Cabinet except Panneerselvam and Ma Foi K. Pandiarajan have been retained.
Dindigul Srinivasan will be number two in seniority in the new Cabinet. Sengottaiyan is ranked No 3.
The new Ministers and their portfolios:
Edappadi K. Palaniswami - Home, Finance, PWD, Irrigation, Highways, Public, Elections, Personnel
Dindigul Srinivasan - Forest
Sengottaiyan - School Education - He is the new minister. He is replacing MaFoi K. Pandiarajan.
O.S. Manian - Handlooms
Sellur Raju - Cooperation
C Vijaya Baskar - Health
D Jayakumar - Fisheries
M C Sampath - Industries
Karupannan - Environment
Thangamani - Electricity
Velumani - Municipal Administration
C.Ve Shanmugham - Law
K.P. Anbazhagan - Higher Education
Kamaraj - Food and Civil Supplies
V. Saroja - Social Welfare
K. Radhakrishnan - Housing and Urban Development
Duraikannu- Agriculture
Kadambur Raju - Information and Publicity
R.B. Udhayakumar - Revenue
Natarajan - Tourism
K.C. Veeramani - Commercial Taxes
K.T. Rajendra Balaji - Milk and Dairy Development
P.Benjamin - Rural Industries
Dr Nilofer Kafeel - Labour
M.R.Vijayabhaskar - Transport
Dr. M. Manikandan - Information Technology
V.M. Rajalakshmi - Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare
G. Baskaran - Khadi and Village Industries Board
Sevvoor S. Ramachandran - Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments
S.Valarmathi - Backward Classes and Minorities Welfare
P. Balakrishna Reddy - Animal Husbandry
2.55 p.m.: Senior AIADMK leader C. Ponnaiyan said "The posts the other faction has is illegal. We are still legally in the posts that was given to us by late Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. The new occupants of the posts are illegal." Mr. Ponnaiyan said "The nomination of TTV Dinakaran is illegal."
He further added "Post of general secretary is through election by the party members." He said "In the absence of a general secretary the other office bearers carry out the duties of the general secretary."
2.50 p.m.: Speaking to reporters from OPS' house, MaFoi Pandiarajan said "The faction that is trying to form government is invalid we had said." He further said "All MLAs if they vote with their conscience will not vote for the family. We have lodged a complaint with the EC."
Former Minister Semmalai said "We will continue this fight he says. Terms it dharma yudham. I have been in AIADMK. I am from Salem district's mettur. People asked me to come and listen to them. I listened to the voters and the party functionaries for a day."
Mr. Semmalai said "Based on their views I realised people's opinions and decided to give my support to OPS. OPS has the goodwill of the people." Mr. Semmalai said "People and followers are on our side. OPS will win this dharma yudham."
1.40 p.m.: Meanwhile, some of the MLAs have started to leave Golden Bay Resorts in Kuvathur.
And, at party headquarters, supporters are distributing sweets, celebrating the Governor's invitation of Mr. Palaniswami to form the government.
S. Poorvaja captures this:
1.24 p.m.:T.K. Rohit says Mr. Panneerselvam is about to address a gathering outside his residence at Greenways Road. Mr. Panneerselvam says he will fight the "dharma yudham" till Amma's rule is reinstated in Tamil Nadu again. "We should all get together and prevent the party from going into the hands of one family," he adds.
His short address is over. Mr. Panneerselvam is leaving to meet a supporter who immolated himself. A convoy is getting ready.
12.43 p.m.: Party supporters at Golden Bay Resorts in Kuvathur hail interim general secretary V.K. Sasikala.
Meanwhile, our correspondent Devesh K. Pandey from Delhi reports that party MP V. Maitreyan has sought a meeting with the Election Commission of India. The Commission will meet him at 2.45 p.m.
This outcome of the meeting will decide the validity of Ms. Sasikala's actions as the general secretary of the party.
12.31 p.m.: Here's a detailed profile of Mr. Palaniswami.
The AIADMK’s new Legislature Party leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami, who is the Minister for Public Works, State Highways and Minor Ports, has been a staunch loyalist of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) supremo Jayalalithaa since the time she entered active politics in the 1980s.
He was part of her four-member kitchen cabinet from 2011-16 along with Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and former ministers Natham R. Viswanathan and R. Vaithilingam. Presently, he is ranked number three in the Cabinet.
Hailing from the rural Nedungulam village in Edappadi taluk, 62-year-old Mr. Palaniswami joined AIADMK in the 1980s. He threw his weight behind Jayalalithaa when the party suffered a split after the demise of founder M.G. Ramachandran in 1987.
12.14 p.m.: Edappadi K. Palaniswami has to prove his majority within 15 days. The leader and the Minister will be sworn in at 4 p.m.
At Mr. Panneerselvam's residence, the reactions are in contrast to those at Kuvathur.
11.35 a.m. AIADMK legislature party leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami has arrived at Raj Bhavan to meet Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao.
10.56 a.m.: Mr. Palaniswami has left Golden Bay Resorts in Kuvathur with four Ministers, including S.P. Velumani and P. Thangamani.
10.40 a.m.: Here's a round-up of the developments on Wednesday.
The two camps — one led by Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and the other by Mr. Palaniswami — met the Governor late night. “The meeting lasted for about 25 minutes. We told the Governor that it was a clear case of majority, and Mr. Palaniswami should be invited to form the government,” said a party senior, who was at the meeting.
“We also told him that Mr. Palaniswami was also popular and known among the people in the State. We asked him to render justice. The Governor did not say anything. He treated us with respect and listened to us,” he said.
Speaking to reporters outside the Raj Bhavan, Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar said, “We informed the Governor that Mr. Palaniswami has been nominated unanimously by the party MLAs. We have confidence that he will uphold democracy. He informed us that he will consider our views.”
“We have 124 MLAs. They [Mr. Panneerselvam’s camp] have only 8 MLAs. Is 8 big or is 124? Think about it,” Mr. Jayakumar said.
AIADMK interim general secretary V.K. Sasikala, convicted by the Supreme Court in the disproportionate assets case on Tuesday, surrendered at a special court, a few hundred metres from Bengaluru Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara, and became prisoner no. 9234.
Before leaving for Bengaluru by road on Wednesday, Ms. Sasikala stopped by at the memorial to Jayalalithaa on the Marina in Chennai and dramatically slapped the memorial’s slab thrice as if taking a vow. After this, she headed out to former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran’s house in Ramavaram and paid floral tributes to his portrait and his statue. She also spent a few minutes sitting on the floor of the house in front of the portrait.
