Chennai, Feb 3 (UNI) Ousted AIADMK leader V K Sasikala on Friday
said “time is nearing” for the merger of the two warring factions of the
AIADMK party and that she could see the early signs for it.
Sasikala, who is the close-aide of late AIADMK Supremo and former Chief
Minister J.Jayalalithaa, made this remark hours after BJP National General
Secretary and Tamil Nadu-incharge CT Ravi and BJP State Unit President
K.Annamalai met AIADMK interim General Secretary Edappadi Palaniswami
and ousted AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam separately and appealed to
them to come together and face the February 27 bypoll to Erode East
Assembly seat as an 'united' AIADMK to defeat the ruling DMK-led Front.
“We are very close to it (merger of the two factions). That’s what I can say
now and I can see the early signs...the situation is also conducive,” Sasikala
told reporters here on Friday.
However, she expressed her displeasure for involving the BJP over the
internal party affairs of AIADMK and said, “If they (OPS and EPS) would
have understood the party well, this would have been avoided.”
Reiterating that factionalism is not good for the party, Sasikala said “Our
action should reflect the thoughts and words of the two great leaders
(AIADMK Founder MGR and J Jayalalithaa).”
Meanwhile, Sasikala’s nephew and AMMK Founder TTV Dhinakaran said
it would be good if all the anti-DMK parties come together and field a
common candidate in the bypoll to defeat the DMK-led Front.
He insisted on the need for a united political force to take on the ruling
party and its alliance in the bypoll.
UNI GV 1737