Nearly a fortnight after leaders of the two AIADMK factions expressed the desire to come together, the talks have not made any significant progress. In an interview with The Hindu , senior AIADMK (Amma) leader and head of the committee for talks, R. Vaithilingam, says the preconditions set by the AIADMK (Puratchi Thalaivi Amma) cannot be fulfilled immediately. He is hopeful that the talks would pick up steam this week, and that the merger would be smooth. Excerpts:
The primary condition set by the O. Panneerselvam (OPS) faction for talks was removal of V.K. Sasikala from the post of AIADMK general secretary. But your party has not responded to it. Why?
The general secretary was elected by the general council of the AIADMK. And so, it is the general council that can decide whether to remove the general secretary or not. Now, the members of our general council are in both factions of our party. This being so, how can one faction decide on the issue? Only if they [OPS faction] come, we can decide on the issue by convening a meeting of the general council.
The other precondition the OPS faction had set was ordering a probe into the death of Jayalalithaa. Have you accepted the precondition?
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) plea is pending before the Madras High Court over the same issue. If there is a direction from the Madras High Court [ordering a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation], we are ready to do so.
The Madras High Court has urged the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission to conduct the local body polls preferably by July. With the merger talks taking more time than expected, are you prepared to face the polls in case there is a delay in getting the ‘Two Leaves’ symbol?
In politics, everything depends on trust and confidence. Our efforts are towards getting back the ‘Two Leaves’ symbol given to us by our leader Puratchi Thalaivar (M.G. Ramachandran). We are confident of winning back the symbol despite all odds.
There have been allegations by various political parties that the BJP government in the Centre is trying to influence the political scene in Tamil Nadu and control the AIADMK. What’s your view?
Yes, there have been allegations and claims. But, they may say so for political purposes. But, we do not think that way [that the BJP government at the Centre is trying to influence the political scene in Tamil Nadu].
Leaders from your own faction are speaking in different voices indicating that all is not well. For instance, former minister V. Senthil Balaji has taken up an old issue and is protesting against Minister M.R. Vijayabhaskar...
Yes, there are some individuals who have been taking up certain issues. We are in the process of calling them and holding talks with them to find an amicable solution to their problems.