Chennai : The ruling AIADMK represented by its co-coordinator and Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday moved the Madras High Court seeking permission to file a civil suit to prevent the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), which was founded by V K Sasikala’s nephew TTV Dhinakaran on Thursday from using its new flag.
Palaniswami contended that the AMMK’s flag comprising black, white and red stripes with the image of Jayalalithaa in the centre was deceptively similar to the AIADMK’s flag of black and red with former Chief Minister CN Annadurai’s image in white in the centre. He also sought Rs 25 lakh from Dhinakaran as damages.
Dhinakaran had floated the AMMK with ‘’pressure cooker’’ as the party’s symbol after obtaining an order from the Delhi High Court to allow him to run his own outfit with flag and symbol pending a resolution on his petition challenging the Election Commission of India’s order allotting the name and symbol of the AIADMK to the faction led by Palaniswami and his deputy in government O Panneerselvam.
Justice CV Karthikeyan of the High Court granted permission to Palaniswami to file the civil suit. Such permission is required under Order I Rule 8 of Code of Civil Procedure whenever an association or a political party wants to sue someone or an entity.
However, Dhinakaran at a press conference in Madurai said the AMMK was not a political party but an interim organisation floated with the specific objective of retrieving the AIADMK and its ‘’Two Leaves’’ symbol from what he called “betrayers”. Nonetheless, the AMMK would contest in all elections from the local body to the Parliamentary polls. Presently, two AIADMK MLAs,18 disqualified MLAs and a Rajya Sabha member Sasikala Pushpa are backing Dhinakaran, who was elected legislator as an Independent candidate from Jayalalithaa’’s R K Nagar constituency last December.