DMK convenes emergency meeting, likely to consider backing Panneerselvam
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam (File Photo) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam (File Photo)
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Wednesday convened an emergency party meeting of its MLAs to assess the political crisis playing out in the state. Retracting from its earlier stand, sources in the party told The Indian Express that the party will likely reconsider the option of extending support to O Panneerselvam, in case Governor Vidyasagar Rao calls for a floor test.
On Tuesday, hours after the Supreme Court ruling in the disproportionate assets case, AIADMK MLAs elected minister for highways Edappadi Palanisami as the legislature party leader. Over 120 MLAs camping at the Golden Bay Resort in Kuvathar signed written affidavits in support of Palanisami. The Gounder leader from Edappadi met Governor Vidyasagar in the evening and staked claim to form the government. A delegation of expelled AIADMK members led by caretaker Chief Minister Panneerselvam met the governor soon after Palanisami left the Raj Bhavan.
The governor has sought the opinions of three legal experts to dissolve the political uncertainty that gripped the state. At least two of them recommended for a floor test, asking both Panneerselvam and Palanisami to prove their majority inside the Tamil Nadu Assembly. Despite the apex court judgment working in his favour, not a single AIADMK MLA has switched loyalties. They did not even leave the resort where they have been camping for nearly a week despite the police vouching for their security. Panneerselvam alleged that the MLAs were being forcibly kept hostage at the resort. Earlier, the state prosecutor informed the Madras High Court that the MLAs were staying the resort at their own volition.
© The Indian Express Online Media Pvt Ltd