AIADMK expels O Paneerselvam; Edappadi Palaniswami seizes power

CHENNAI: The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) on Monday adopted a resolution to expel former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Paneerselvam (OPS) from the party. The new action comes after the election of Edappadi Palaniswami as the interim general secretary at the party general council meeting held in Chennai today.

OPS and his close aides JCD Prabhakar, R Vaithilingam and PH Manoj Pandian were removed from the party in the name of anti-party activities. Earlier, the general council meeting had demanded Paneerselvam's removal from the party. Following this, a special resolution was passed to remove OPS. OPS will be removed from the party's primary membership. The party also appointed former minister Dindigul Srinivasan as treasurer, a post that OPS had held.

The development follows Madras High Court allowing Tamil Nadu’s main opposition party to hold its General Council meeting and is a setback for the party’s former coordinator OPS who had petitioned the court for a stay.

The HC order was passed at 9 am and the GC meeting led by E Palaniswami at the party office in Vanagaram, was chaired by the presidium chairman A Tamil Mahan Hussain. The meeting passed as many as 16 resolutions, including one that squashed dual-leadership and created the post of deputy general secretary and to ensure electing a person for the post by the primary members of the party. The party election will be conducted in four months.