EPS asks AIADMK dist secys to gear up for polls

CHENNAI: AIADMK interim general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Thursday directed his district secretaries to gear up for the election to the post of general secretary of the party and strengthen the booth committees for the forthcoming general elections.
Former AIADMK minister D Jayakumar said the AIADMK-BJP tie-up continues and denied any confrontation with the BJP. “It is (BJP-led) National Democratic Alliance at the national level and AIADMK-led alliance at the state-level,” he said. Palaniswami had invited all the 69 district secretaries supporting his leadership and senior functionaries of six other districts, where the secretaries had switched to the OPS camp, to discuss election of general secretary.
“There is no bar on holding the election to the post of general secretary and the party is free to announce the date of poll. The meeting was all about preparedness and EPS gave directions to the secretaries to get ready,” said a senior leader. The district secretaries at the meeting had expressed keenness to hold early election, he said.
The Madras high court last week refused to grant ex parte interim order on a civil suit filed by Alangulam MLA and OPS supporter Paul Manoj Pandian to restrain the AIADMK, Palaniswami and Panneerselvam from acting on the July 11 general council resolutions. The resolutions include, expulsion of OPS and appointment of Palaniswami as interim general secretary. The case has been listed for hearing on March 17.
The meeting also comes close on the heels of the party's humiliating defeat in the Erode East bypoll. Palaniswami told the partymen to draw strategies in future elections based on the lessons learnt in Erode. Insiders say there was no discussion at the district secretaries’ meeting about the ongoing war of words between the AIADMK and the BJP.
However, Madurai urban district secretary Sellur K Raju told reporters near the party headquarters that BJP functionaries should not sound arrogant just because they are in power at the Centre. “Once there were respected people in the BJP. Now, incompetent people and pests are there. Even Annamalai is loud-mouthed,” the former minister said.