EPS blames OPS for Assembly poll loss, says can't unite with him

New Delhi:  AIADMK leader and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) on Thursday blamed O Panneerselvam (OPS) for the loss in Assembly elections, saying that everyone had accepted him as the CM candidate except for OPS, which led to the party's defeat.

His comments came a day after the Madras High Court ordered status quo as on June 23, on the pleas against the crucial 11 July General Council meet of AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, ruling as invalid a set of resolutions including expulsion of OPS from the party and the elevation of his rival EPS as the party's interim general secretary.

"During the last elections, everyone accepted me as the CM candidate of AIADMK but O Panneerselvam didn't accept that. Due to this, we lost that election by a difference of 3 percent votes," said EPS.

During the last elections, everyone accepted me as the CM candidate of AIADMK but O Panneerselvam didn't accept that. Due to this, we lost that election by a difference of 3% votes: AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami pic.twitter.com/BPhwVzdL0v

— ANI (@ANI) August 18, 2022

He said that since Panneerselvam and his family members need a position in the party, he invited him to unite the AIADMK.

"When we invited Panneerselvam for the General Council meeting he didn't attend and came with rowdies to party headquarters. How can we unite with him?" he asked.

When we invited O Panneerselvam for the General Council meeting he didn't attend and came with rowdies to Party HQ. How can we unite with him? Members of his family and he need a position in the party. So he invited me to unite AIADMK: AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami pic.twitter.com/ABA4jufd8X

— ANI (@ANI) August 18, 2022

After the court order, OPS played the unity card and flagged his desire to take into the party fold, all those who believed in its ideology and principles.

This included the ones "who have been kept away" from the party, the leader said.

Responding to the court verdict, Panneerselvam said he trusted dharma, the judiciary, party workers and the people, "who believe truth and dharma are by my side."

"It was a historic ruling. The order was a complete victory for the AIADMK," he said.

"This verdict proves justice, dharma, party workers, people and especially the Almighty will not accept usurping a political party by force, let alone someone's house," he said in a statement.

Those who show scant disregard for party laws formulated by its founder, the late chief minister M G Ramachandran (MGR), will be defeated, he said, adding, henceforth the AIADMK, by virtue of its unity, will grow to be an iron fortress that cannot be breached.

"I will now take along the 1.5 crore party workers who believe Amma (the late CM J Jayalalithaa) is the permanent general secretary," he added.

Later, speaking to reporters, OPS dedicated the HC ruling to the "1.5 crore party workers."

Invoking MGR and Jayalalithaa, he said the AIADMK was a cadre-based movement and "splitting it or any authoritarianism concerning an individual or a family is not possible."

"Like Anna (Dravidian stalwart C N Annadurai) said, those in the leadership should have the maturity to tolerate criticism. Whoever created insults, tolerate them and take them along is the facet of those in leadership," Panneerselvam, who paid tributes at the memorial of Jayalalithaa here, said.

Henceforth "there is no us and them," he said, in an apparent reference to the rival camp and stated that according to the court ruling, party functionaries will continue in the same posts they were in prior to 23 June. Technically, that would make him the Coordinator and Palaniswami the joint coordinator.

"The responsibility given to me by workers is Coordinator. Like how MGR and Amma made AIADMK a strong unit, we will do the same...there is no them and us now. It is one movement now, a workers' movement," he said.

To a question, he said "all should unite...all those who have been kept away will be taken in...all those who are aligned with AIADMK ideology and policies will be taken...we will respect the court order."

Meanwhile, the Palaniswami camp insisted that it was not a setback for the former chief minister.
Senior leader and former minister K P Munusamy said the party high command will respond in detail after going through the order copy.

The general councils held on 23 June and 11 July were done properly like the days of the late Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa, he said.

With inputs from agencies

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