The AIADMK’s general council on Sunday amended the bylaws governing election to party units by substituting the erstwhile post of ‘general secretary’ with the current top posts of ‘coordinator’ and ‘co-coordinator’.
Rule 30 (v) of the AIADMK bylaws, as amended in February 2007, when Jayalalithaa was general secretary, mandated that those looking to contest the post of office-bearers should have been members of the party for five years “without any break”. Those who leave the party in between or are removed from the party by the general secretary upon disciplinary action will cease to be party members.
The rule stated, “If such persons have been re-admitted into the party, their membership will be taken into account only from the date of their readmission, and they will become eligible to contest the organisational elections only after five years.” The general secretary had the power to relax these norms.
“Now, we don’t have the post of general secretary. The party is led by coordinator (Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam) and co-coordinator (Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami),” a second-line leader said.
“So, we have amended this rule suitably whereby the same guidelines would be applicable for those wanting to contest for these two top posts,” he a second-line leader explained. “On the topic of elections, the earlier rule merely mentioned ‘office-bearers’. Now, specifically the posts of coordinator and co-coordinator have been included in the clause,” he added. The post of general secretary has been substituted. Some sections in the party inferred this as an attempt to prevent Jayalalithaa’s jailed aide V.K. Sasikala from contesting for any top post as and when she is released. While the party had not expelled her from primary membership, there is ambiguity is her membership stood suspended on account of non-renewal.
In another amendment to the AIADMK bylaw, the party included its IT Wing, Traders’ Wing and Cultural Wing as associate bodies of the party. “So far, they were not associate bodies,” they said. The AIADMK also amended another provision to increase the party’s district units to 56. At the meeting, senior leader K.P. Munusamy sought to equate the party’s dual leadership with a ‘sharp weapon’ and said it had to be handled sensitively, or else there will be consequences. His remark was inferred as an attempt to get the party to “accord due respect” to Mr. Panneerselvam.
On his part, Mr. Panneerselvam said the leadership will not take arbitrary decisions. Its decisions will be towards the welfare of the party functionaries and Tamil Nadu.
