Former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s close aide, V.K. Sasikala, will continue with the legal battle to retrieve the AIADMK and play a larger role in the formation of the next AIADMK government, according to Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader, T.T.V Dhinakaran
Addressing journalists in Madurai on Wednesday, he said Ms. Sasikala would be given a warm reception at the Tamil Nadu border on February 7 when she returns to Chennai. He said the AMMK, “formed to retrieve AIADMK” will take forward its task in a democratic way.
Mr. Dhinakaran contended that as per the by-laws of the AIADMK, only the general secretary had the powers to convene the general body meeting or to remove any one from the party. “On December 29, 2016, Ms. Sasikala was elected as the general secretary by the general body. Since she could not act as general secretary after being jailed, the powers automatically went to the deputy general secretary (himself). Since, the next general body meeting was not convened as per the by-laws, a case is pending before the court on the removal of Ms. Sasikala,” the R.K. Nagar MLA added.
Stating that the people of Tamil Nadu were aware as to what would happen if the DMK returned to power, he said all the supporters of Jayalalithaa will ensure that AIADMK retained power. “Ms. Sasikala will have a bigger role in the formation of the next AIADMK government,” he claimed.
When a journalist asked if some of the “corrupt” elements in the AIADMK were blocking Sasikala’s re-entry into the AIADMK, Mr. Dhinakaran said that even those people know what would happen to them if the DMK comes back to power.
“Maybe some might work with some stealth understanding in favour of the DMK,” he alleged.
When asked about those pasting posters in support of Sasikala being expelled from the AIADMK, he said there was bound to be a lot of “chemical reaction” after the release of Ms. Sasikala.
The closure of Jayalalithaa’s recently inaugurated memorial “for maintenance” in anticipation of Sasikala’s visit there was laughable, he said.
