Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy and O Panneerselvam on Monday sealed the deal for the merger of the two factions of AIADMK.
Panneerselvam will be given the portfolio of finance ministry and the position of deputy chief minister. He will be sworn in at 4.30 pm on Monday.
After announcing the merger at a press meet, Palanisamy said that a 11-member coordination committee will run the party. Panneerselvam will be the convener of AIADMK, I will be the co-convener and KP Munusamy will be the deputy co-convener, Palanisamy said.
“Our first priority will be to retrieve the two leaves symbol. We will fulfill all the promises made by Amma,” Palanisamy said.
“Amma (Jayalalithaa) has said before that after me AIADMK will last over 100 years. We all will make sure it happens,” he said, adding, “We all are children of one mother, and Amma (Jayalalithaa) is that one mother”.
“Had few difficulties in recent times, similar to what happened after MGR’s demise, but both OPS & EPS came forward to unite party,” Munusamy said.
There was no mention of jailed AIADMK general secretary VK Sasikala in the press statement.
The merger comes after the recent meeting of both Palansamy and Panneerselvam with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi. Both EPS and OPS had met Modi separately in the national capital.
The crucial meeting for the merger of the two factions of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) took place at the party headquarters in Chennai.
Palanisamy, who had earlier canceled his scheduled visit to AIADMK head office, met Panneerselvam at the party head office on Monday afternoon.
Earlier on Monday, 17 AIADMK MLAs, the supporters of TTV Dhinakaran, had reached his Besant Nagar residence for a meeting, according to ANI.
Governor C Vidyasagar Rao, who was in Mumbai, canceled all the engagements and arrived in Chennai.
(Agencies)
