R ARIVANANTHAM
CHENNAI, OCT 5
Quoting Bhagwad Gita, AIADMK coordinator, and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on Monday said that the welfare of the people and cadres is paramount for him.
The party will consider this and arrive at a ‘decision’ on Chief Ministerial candidate.
Amid a standoff with party co-coordinator and Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami over constituting an 11-member steering committee and on who should be the Chief Minister candidate of the party for the 2021 Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Panneerselvam, on his twitter handle gave a cryptic message.
தமிழக மக்கள் மற்றும் அஇஅதிமுக கழகத் தொண்டர்களின் நலனை கருத்தில் கொண்டே எனது முடிவுகள் இதுவரை இருந்துள்ளன. இனியும் அவ்வாறே இருக்கும்.
எது நடந்ததோ அது நன்றாகவே நடந்தது!
எது நடக்கிறதோ அது நன்றாகவே நடக்கிறது!!
எது நடக்கவிருக்கிறதோ அதுவும் நன்றாகவே நடக்கும்!!
— O Panneerselvam (@OfficeOfOPS) October 5, 2020
The Deputy Chief Minister said he had so far taken “decisions” only considering the welfare of the Tamil Nadu people and AIADMK cadres.
In the future too, he would continue to take “decisions” taking into account the interests of the people and party workers, he said.
“Whatever has happened has happened for good. Whatever is happening, is happening for good. Whatever is going to happen will also be good,” he said.
The popular verses are from the Bhagavad Gita.
Panneerselvam’s remarks, seen against the backdrop of AIADMK’s statement days ago that it would announce the Chief Ministerial nominee on October 7 assumes significance.
Asked about the tweet, political analyst Sumanth Raman said there could be two interpretations of Panneerselvam’s cryptic message.
“One is that he was going to take a big decision. Another is that there may not be a drastic move considering factors like strengthening the party and fulfilling the wishes of the cadres,” he said.
The message has been worded in a cryptic fashion deliberately to create a sense of expectation from him and to turn the focus on him, Raman said.
The Deputy Chief Minister may also expect a face-saver kind of an arrangement from Palaniswami, he said.
At the September 28 AIADMK Executive Committee meeting, Palaniswami and Panneerselvam had a verbal duel over who should be the Chief Ministerial candidate of the party for the next year’s assembly election and on setting up a panel.
Following AIADMK Supremo J Jayalalithaa’s death in 2016, Panneerselvam and Palaniswami led separate factions and they came together in 2017 August easing out V K Sasikala (Jayalalithaa’s aide) and her relatives from the party.
As the rivalry over CM candidature is on high pitch, the Chief Minister and AIADMK Cocoordinator Edappadi K. Palaniswami scheduled to meet the Governor Banwarilal Purohit at Raj Bhavan at 4 p.m. on Monday. Though it was announced that EPS to meet Governor to apprise about prevailing situation about Coronavirus in the state, political pundits attributes the meeting of political discussion.
