Pulamaipithan, an AIADMK veteran, on Saturday called for the return of V.K. Sasikala, party’s former interim general secretary, to the organisation.
Mr. Pulamaipithan, who served as chairman of the presidium of the party about 20 years ago, told The Hindu that Ms. Sasikala stood with the former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa through thick and thin. “She should come back,” he said.
Criticising the leadership for expelling those who got in touch with Ms. Sasikala, the 85-year-old, who had spoken to her over the phone, said, “no one has the power to remove her, who was elected as [interim] general secretary by the party executive and the general council.”
Asked if she would not be viewed as a liability in the light of adverse perception about her in certain quarters, Mr. Pulamaipithan, who was Deputy Chairman of the now-abolished Legislative Council in the 1980s, replied that such a perception was created by her critics.During the day, Ms. Sasikala’s office released audio clips, containing her telephonic conversation with six persons, including M. Periyaveeran, former Periyakulam MLA.
