Tamil Nadu’s caretaker chief minister O Panneerselvam on Thursday said he was confident that “truth will prevail”, after a meeting with Governor C Vidyasagar Rao where he discussed his impasse with CM designate and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader VK Sasikala.
Addressing reporters after his meeting with Rao at the Raj Bhavan, the acting chief minister said he had asked the governor to accept his plea to withdraw his resignation as chief minister.
Panneerselvam said the governor will announce his decision after meeting Sasikala later this evening. Officials said the governor is waiting for instructions from the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government before announcing a final decision on the matter.
The divide in the party was made evident after Panneerselvam on Tuesday night spoke to the media and said he had been forced to resign as chief minister, and that he had continuously been insulted while he ran the state after Jayalalithaa’s death. So far, he has the support of six MLAs – SP Shanmuganathan, Manickam K, R Manoharan, Manoranjitham, VC Arukutty and R Nataraj – besides his own vote. He said his camp is prepared to respond to any allegations levelled by Sasikala and her supporters.
Though Sasikala enjoys the support of a majority of the party MLAs, Panneerselvam has claimed that several legislators are on his side and that he can prove his strength in the state Assembly. Earlier in the day, the party’s Presidium Chairman Madhusudhanan extended his support to Panneerselvam. Sasikala has reportedly sequestered 130 of the party MLAs in a luxury hotel.
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