CHENNAI: Claiming the decision to hold the AIADMK general council (GC) meeting on July 11 without the joint authorisation of the party's coordinator and joint coordinator is illegal, disgruntled party leader O Panneerselvam has asked the Madras High Court to stay the meeting.
He filed a suit on Tuesday against the July 11 GC meeting convened by the Edappadi K Palaniswami camp in the wake of a division bench refusing to entertain a plea with the same prayer. The suit is listed for hearing on Wednesday before Justice Krishnan Ramasamy, who on June 22 turned down a plea filed by GC member M Shanmugam to forbear the June 23 GC from passing any resolutions other than the 23 approved ones.
However, reversing the single judge's order, a division bench barred the GC from passing resolutions other than the 23, after a late-night hearing of an appeal, scuttling the ambitious moves of Palaniswami.
Battling to stop Palaniswami, who wields considerable support of the GC members, from taking over the reins of the party by becoming its single leader with sweeping powers, Panneerselvam has directly approached the court with a plea to stay the July 11 GC meeting which is poised to unsettle him in the party.
In the petition, he said despite the interim directions of the court, the respondents have been deliberately and malignantly attempting to convene an illegal GC meeting on July 11 to illegally alter the bylaws to one person’s unlawful advantage.
The very action of convening the meeting after illegally appointing a permanent presidium chairman is contemptuous and ex facie illegal, he said.
Thus, there appears to be a prima facie case. Secondly, if the said meeting is convened, the respondents, including Palaniswami, can very well disrupt the basic structure of the party, the petition said, adding that if amendments are made the irreparable loss can never be compensated in terms of money.
He said that neither under Rule 19 nor under Rule 20 A is there a provision to convene a meeting by any person other than the coordinator and joint coordinator of the party. Panneerselvam said that on July 4, he was served an illegal notice dated July 1, inviting him to the July 11 GC meeting issued in the name of party office-bearers.
'Bring out truth in Kodanad case'
Panneerselvam’s son P Jayapradeep has urged the State government to probe and bring out the truth pertaining to the Kodanad Estate murder and robbery incidents. In a Facebook post, he said, "I have waited for long to know the truth... I too have a responsibility to raise my voice as I am one of the AIADMK party’s cadre. The truth should be brought out to allay the allegations raised against the party."