Ruling AIADMK faction enacting drama: Panneerselvam

Chennai: Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Monday accused the ruling AIADMK faction of enacting a drama and said he was disbanding the merger negotiating team of his own group.

Panneerselvam told the media here: "After the setting up of the negotiation team, they started playing a drama. We were not ready to play any dramas."

He said AIADMK cadres were with his faction and will be proved soon.

On Sunday night, Panneerselvam announced the decision to disband the seven-member team to negotiate the merger of the two factions in the AIADMK.

After the death of Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa in December, her close aide V.K. Sasikala took control of the AIADMK party by becoming its General Secretary. The party also decided to elect her as the Chief Minister.

Subsequently, Panneerselvam revolted against Sasikala and formed his own faction. He said the dismissal of Sasikala and Deputy General Secretary T.T.V. Dinakaran from the party were pre-conditions for a merger of the two factions.

The ruling faction said Dinakaran will be kept away from party affairs but remained silent on the demand for dismissing Sasikala and Dinakaran from the party's primary membership.

The ruling faction of the AIADMK too had formed a committee to negotiate with the Panneerselvam group on a possible merger.