Opinion OPS wins a breather from HC, but dual leadership model that helped AIADMK in post Amma phase is unlikely to last

The Madras High Court order staying the decisions taken at a recent AIADMK general council meet has given a fresh lease of life to the leadership question in that party. The July 11 meeting had settled the question in favour of former Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS). The EPS faction celebrated its success by expelling O Panneerselvam (OPS), also a former CM, from the party. The HC order now restores the dual leadership that the AIADMK had adopted after the demise of J Jayalalithaa in December 2016 and the expulsion of her aide V K Sasikala from the party in 2017: As per this arrangement, OPS was appointed the coordinator of the party and EPS the joint coordinator, leaving the post of general secretary vacant. However, the court-directed restoration of the dual leadership is unlikely to last since there is no sign of a patch-up between the two warring leaders. While EPS seems to be in firm control of the AIADMK, the expulsion of OPS could weaken that party, and thereby the Opposition space in Tamil Nadu.

Since the 1970s, politics in Tamil Nadu for nearly four decades pivoted around larger-than-life leaders such as AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran, DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa. These leaders turned their parties into personal fiefs and extensions of their personalities. They nurtured a culture of sycophancy, which was copied even by splinter outfits and smaller parties. This diminished politics and democratic practice in Tamil Nadu. Since the deaths of Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa, the two Dravidian majors have shown signs of moving towards a collective leadership, with second-rung leaders given breathing space and greater room to articulate their views. The dual leadership format adopted by the AIADMK prevented it from imploding after Amma’s death and helped the party complete its term in office. It gave close competition to the formidable DMK alliance in the 2021 assembly election despite the burden of a two-term anti-incumbency. Electoral politics in the state also looks more evenly balanced, with elections ceasing to be one-sided contests.

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However, EPS, who helmed the AIADMK as CM — OPS served as Deputy CM — after Jayalalithaa’s death, seems to have decided against the dual power centre model for the party. The decision to abolish it and the expulsion of OPS and his supporters from the AIADMK at the July general council meet indicate that EPS is aiming for complete control of the party. His leadership skills will be severely tested as the dissident factions — besides OPS, there is Sasikalaa and TTV Dinakaran waiting to take over the party — are likely to push back.