Sasikala Natarajan will soon be the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, AIADMK leaders have said.
The news of
Sasikala Natarajan's election to the AIADMK legislature party, which will enable her to
take over as the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, has received mixed reactions. While her opposition DMK has vociferously protested against the idea, social media witnessed both support and opposition. Chinnamma (mother's little sister) as Ms Natarajan is known to her supporters, had taken charge of the party last month after the death of Jayalalithaa. She had promised to follow in the footsteps of Jayalalithaa, who, in her lifetime, had occupied both posts.
At the party meeting today, Chief Minister O Panneerselvam proposed her name for the Legislature party chief and after her election, announced his resignation.
Within minutes, Twitter was flooded with reactions and speculations:
Soon the hashtag #TNSaysNo2Sasi was flooded.
Ms Natarajan, 61, is not an elected member of the assembly and had never held any post in the party. "It was Panneerselvam who had first persuaded me to become the chief minister and general secretary as well when Jayalalithaa passed away," news agency Press Trust of India quoted her as telling party legislators.
Senior party leader and Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai is also among those who backed her for the Chief Minister's post.
After her election, Ms Natarajan said the AIADMK would strive for the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu.