hennai, February 10

Amid continued uncertainty over the swearing-in of V.K. Sasikala, the feud in Tamil Nadus ruling
party escalated on Friday with the chief ministership aspirant sacking party presidium chairman
E. Madusudanan, who wrote to the Election Commission not to recognise her as AIADMK General
Secretary.
Sending a strong message to her detractors, Sasikala sacked Madusudanan from the primary
membership of the party, a day after he switched over to the rebel camp led by caretaker Chief
Minister O Panneerselvam, and appointed former minister K.A. Sengottaiyan in his place.
Also read: SC declines hearing on plea to restrain Sasikala from becoming CM
Sengottaiyan was relieved as the partys Organisation Secretary, a post to which he was appointed
last week.
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Sasikala urged the party workers not to have any truck with Madusudanan and said they should
extend their cooperation to Sengottaiyan.
Giving a major boost to the rival camp, Madusudanan yesterday extended his support to
Panneerselvam, saying he wanted to safeguard the party.
To protect the AIADMK, everybody should join hands with OPS (Panneerselvam), he had said.
Sasikala had removed Panneerselvam from the Treasurer post immediately after his revolt, but he
has maintained that being a temporary General Secretary, she does not have the powers to
appoint or remove party functionaries. Insisting that he continues to be the treasurer,
Panneerselvam has written to banks not to allow anybody else to operate the party accounts
without his consent.
Sasikala had appointed another senior leader Dindigul C. Srinivasan as the Treasurer.
Hitting back at Sasikala, Madusudanan has written to the poll panel urging it to not to recognise
her as AIADMK General Secretary, saying she was not elected to the post as per party by-laws.
Madusudanan told reporters about the letter shortly before he was sacked from the AIADMK by
Sasikala for acting against the party.
Asserting that only cadres can elect a General Secretary as per party rules, Madusudanan said he
had asked the EC not to recognise Sasikala as party chief.
Expelled AIADMK Rajya Sabha member Sasikala Pushpa has already petitioned the EC against
the election of V.K. Sasikala, saying it was not done as per procedure and the EC has sought the
partys response to it.
As per party by-laws, the General Secretary can be elected only by cadres. As per rules, there is no
temporary General Secretary post, Madusudanan said.
A candidate for the General Secretarys post should also have completed at least five years in the
party.
Since Sasikala re-joined the AIADMK only on March 31, 2012, she does not qualify to become the
General Secretary. I have requested Election Commission not to accept her appointment, he said.
MLAs in Sasikala camp dismiss allegations of their detention
A section of AIADMK MLAs owing allegiance to Sasikala on Friday dismissed media reports and
allegations by the Panneerselvam camp that they have been detained at a resort near here, and
asserted that they were free.
V.C. Arukutty, MLA from Kavundampalayam in Coimbatore and a supporter of Panneerselvam,
alleged that the MLAs had been detained and were not reachable.
The MLAs are not reachable. They have been detained.
They are legislators elected by people, so release them. Let them go and meet people, he told
reporters here.
However, the MLAs owing allegiance to Sasikala rejected the allegations.
We are free. We are keenly awaiting Governors invitation (to Sasikala to form government). We
are not children to be detained or abducted as is being reported in a section of media, Perundurai
MLA ND Venkadachalam said.
Responding to reports that most of the MLAs were not reachable on the phone, Venkadachalam
said he had switched off his mobile phone to avoid taking unnecessary calls, and speculations
and wrong news.
Gudiyatham MLA Jayanti Padmanabhan also said she has not been detained as was being claimed
by Panneerselvam loyalists.
Former Minister and senior party leader B Valarmathi insisted that the MLAs were free and
alleged they were being intimidated by those close to Panneerselvam.
The MLAs are free. They are being intimidated by Panneerselvams relatives over phone and that
is why they have switched off their mobile phones, she said.
Meanwhile, Srivaikundam MLA and former minister SP Shanmuganathan, a supporter of
Panneerselvam, filed a police complaint here seeking to know the whereabouts of the legislators.
There is no idea where the MLAs are, he said, adding that he has urged the police to find them.
As there was no word from Raj Bhavan about Sasikalas swearing-in even five days after she was
elected AIADMK legislature party leader, party spokesperson Vaigaichelvan voiced confidence
that she would take over the reins of the state soon.
Chinnamma (Sasikala) had met the Governor yesterday.
Good news will come soon. She will become Chief Minister, he asserted.
He also reiterated the party stand that DMK was behind Panneerselvams revolt.
Meanwhile, in an indication that the swearing-in might be further delayed, the venue of the
ceremony today wore a desolate look even as the police security was withdrawn.
Soon after Sasikala was elected AIADMK legislature party leader, the University of Madras
auditorium was spruced up on a war-footing for her swearing-in.
The heavy police bandobust which was visible for the last few days is no more there and the
premises wore a quiet look.
Even the workers who were decking up the entry points are conspicuous by their absence.
'20 lawmakers on protest hunger strike'
The Madras High Court on Tuesday asked the Tamil Nadu government to respond to allegations
that lawmakers of the ruling AIADMK were illegally detained.
Two habeas corpus petitions have filed in court to demand to know whereabouts of the
lawmakers. One petition claims that 20 lawmakers are on a hunger strike to protest their illegal
detention.
A petitioners counsel K Balu claimed also that an MLA, SP Shanmuganathan, had written to the
governor and the director general of police claiming that he had escaped and that a complaint
has been lodged with police.
He also claimed that lives of 20 lawmakers who went on a protest hunger strike were in danger.
"(Counsel) K Balu submits that 20 of the MLAs are refusing food and drink owing to their illegal
confinement. If true, the matter is one of serious concern. However, this court cannot act on the
mere say of the counsel. Given the nature of the case, it would only be appropriate to afford the
state an opportunity to inform its response," a division Bench of justices CT Selvam and T
Mathivanan said in its order. The court will hear the case on February 13.
The petitions want directions to have lawmakers M Geetha and T Ramachandran "found and
freed.
A petition by MR Illavarasan a voter from Ramachandrans assembly segment, Kunnam
claims that the lawmaker went missing after he attended a party meeting recently and has since
been completely inaccessible, even by phone.
Another petition has been filed by a cousin of Krishnarayapuram MLA Geetha.
State Public Prosecutor Rajarathinam, representing the state government, admitted that its
statement on Friday that the lawmakers were at the MLAs' Hostel was incorrect and he needed
time to find out where they were. PTI