TTV Dinakaran has called for MLAs meeting today at AIADMK headquarters. (File photo)
TTV Dinakaran, deputy chief of the AIADMK faction led by his aunt VK Sasikala, today summoned a meeting of party's 122 lawmakers today after senior cabinet ministers led by Chief Minister E Palaniswami decided late on Tuesday night to "delink" the party's two bosses from the "government and the party".
The move to dump them came in the midst of negotiations for a merger between AIADMK leaders who had aligned with Ms Sasikala that is in power in Tamil Nadu, and the dozen-odd leaders who backed O Panneerselvam, or OPS, as he is called.
"Dinakaran has called for MLAs meeting today at AIADMK headquarters," said Perambur lawmaker P Vetrivel, hours after a "consultative" meeting chaired by the Chief Minister sealed the ouster of the party's first family.
"There was a consensus to delink the government and the party from TTV Dhinakaran and the family he belongs to. This is the view of the basic partymen, district secretaries, MLAs and Ministers," Finance Minister D Jayakumar told reporters late on Tuesday.
Mr Dinakaran's decision to summon lawmakers for the meeting at the AIADMK headquarters today, reminiscent of a similar meeting convened by his aunt nearly 70 days earlier when OPS dramatically declared outside J Jayalalithaa's memorial at Marina Beach that he had been forced to resign by Sasikala.
But the rebellion came too late; he had resigned from the chief minister's chair and Sasikala had already taken over as party chief. She still holds the post.
In February, over 100 lawmakers had showed up at Sasikala's late-night meeting. They were later taken to the Golden Bay resort near Chennai in luxury buses where they spent over a week till they showed up in the assembly to vote for E Palanisami, named the party's replacement for Mr Panneerselvam after the Supreme Court convicted Sasikala to four years in a Bengaluru court for corruption.
Mr Dinakaran was visiting his aunt in jail when Chief Minister and many of his cabinet colleagues decided to switch their loyalties.
Emissaries of the two factions had been holding meetings to work out a formula for a possible merger. But O Panneerselvam, who was Ms Jayalalithaa's regular stand-in as Chief Minister, had made Sasikala and her nephew's ouster a pre-condition for his return to the party.
"Our stand is Sasikala and her family members should not be in the party," OPS declared on Tuesday in Theni district over 500 from Chennai.