In a move that could further tighten the grip of AIADMK chief V.K. Sasikala's family on the Tamil Nadu government, her nephew T.T.V. Dinakaran is all set to be nominated as the special representative for the state government in New Delhi. Dinakaran was recently appointed the deputy general secretary of the AIADMK amidst chaos and rebellion within the ruling party
If sources in the AIADMK are to be believed, Dinakaran will soon be elevated to this cabinet rank position whereby he would liaison between the state government and the power centres in New Delhi. Sources say with 11 MPs shifting loyalty to the rebelling O. Panneerselvam faction, the Sasikala camp is worried about liaising in Delhi and getting close to the power corridors in the national capital.
They say Dinakaran is looking for the official position only to bridge the gap between the Centre and the state, which would help the Sasikala faction pull on the government in the state for its full term. Sasikala's loyalist Edappadi K.Palanisamy was sworn in as the chief minister after the party chief was convicted in a graft case and sent to jail by the Supreme Court last month.
Dinakaran’s re-entry into the party and his elevation to the top position had been dramatic and happened at a time when the state witnessed a high political turmoil.
Sidelined by Jayalalithaa for more than a decade, Dinakaran was never in the limelight after losing in the 2004 elections. In 2011, he was expelled from the AIADMK along with Sasikala for anti-party activities. However, Jayalalithaa took Sasikala back to her Poes Garden residence after she apologised and promised that she would not truck with any of her family members and that she would not get herself involved in the party affairs. However, Dinakaran and others were not reinstated into the party.
The special representative post will be a blessing for Dinakran as it would help him lobby for getting out of his legal tangles, according to highly placed sources in the AIADMK. It may be recalled that Dinakaran was arrested under the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) in November 1995. He was also detained under COFEPOSA in February 1996. The Madras High Court had recently directed him and Sasikala to face trial in more than two FERA violation cases, which were all registered during 1995-96.
Meanwhile, the Panneerselvam faction dropped another bombshell on Thursday raising several questions over the death of Jayalalithaa. Former minister and AIADMK senior P.H. Pandian said, “The discharge summary (from Apollo hospital) says Amma was pushed down minutes before she was taken to the hospital.” Questioning the gaps in the NSG security offered to Jayalalithaa, he asked why more than 43 CCTV cameras in Apollo were removed after Jayalalithaa was admitted. “The report submitted by Apollo in the court says a medical decision was taken to stop the treatment. If so, who took the decision?” asked Pandian.
The OPS faction has decided to go on a hunger strike on March 8, demanding a probe into Jayalalithaa’s death. The former chief minister died on December 5 at Apollo where she had been under treatment for more than two months.
