Within hours of the merger announcement of the two rival factions of AIADMK, O Pannerselvam takes oath as deputy chief minister. Before this development both the factions led by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam announced their merger on Monday in their party head-quarters. A decision is likely to be taken on the “formal expulsion” of V K Sasikala and her family members, a key demand by the OPS camp that still remains unmet. In a resolution on August 10, the chief minister’s camp had already delegitimised Deputy general Secretary and Sasikala’s nephew TTV Dhinakaran setting the stage for a merger.

Within hours of the merger announcement of the two rival factions of AIADMK, O Pannerselvam takes oath as deputy chief minister. Before this development both the factions led by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam announced their merger on Monday in their party head-quarters. A decision is likely to be taken on the “formal expulsion” of V K Sasikala and her family members, a key demand by the OPS camp that still remains unmet. In a resolution on August 10, the chief minister’s camp had already delegitimised Deputy general Secretary and Sasikala’s nephew TTV Dhinakaran setting the stage for a merger.