A total of 16 resolutions were passed in the crucial All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general council meeting held in Chennai on Monday in which Edappadi K Palaniswami was appointed as the party's interim general secretary and O Paneerselvam was expelled for "anti-party" activities.
IMAGE: Edappadi K Palaniswami acknowledges party workers’ wishes during the AIADMK general council meeting in Chennai, July 11, 2022. Photograph: R Senthil Kumar/PTI Photo
Along with OPS, his supporters -- JCD Prabhakar, R Vaithilingam and PH Manoj Pandian -- were also expelled from the AIADMK.
The resolutions were passed after the Madras high court dismissed a petition by OPS, who sought to stay the holding of the general council meeting. He had contended that only the coordinator and the joint coordinator can convene the GC meeting and that since the newly-appointed presidium chairman had done so, the meeting was technically illegal and hence untenable.
The party has said that anyone who wants to contest for the post of general secretary has to be a member of the party for 10 years. The candidature should be proposed by 10 district secretaries and seconded by the same number of district secretaries of the AIADMK.
Here are the highlights of the resolutions adopted by the AIADMK during its general council meeting.
- The party passed a resolution to terminate the posts of coordinator and joint-coordinator, officially doing away with the dual leadership structure in the party. Earlier, OPS and EPS held these two posts, respectively
- The party passed a resolution naming EPS as interim general secretary
- The post of general secretary has been revived, for which primary members of the party will vote for in fresh elections that will be held within four months. The post which was held by late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was abolished after her death in the year 2016
- The party passed a resolution creating the post of deputy general secretary, who will be selected by the party's general secretary. Both the general secretary and the deputy secretary will serve a term of five years
- Anyone who wants to contest as general secretary has to be a member of the party for 10 years. The candidature should be proposed by 10 district secretaries and seconded by the same number of district secretaries of the party
- The party adopted a resolution congratulating newly elected members to various internal party posts
- The party passed a resolution seeking the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, for 'Periyar' E V Ramasamy Naicker, MG Ramachandran (MGR) and the late chief minister J Jayalalithaa
- The party elected an interim general secretary in this meeting itself
- The party passed a resolution debating the present situation of the AIADMK and future development of the party
- The party condemned the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for terminating the AIADMK's people-oriented schemes
- The DMK government was condemned for not controlling the rising prices of commodities and for failing to take care of law and order in the state
- The party requested the Centre and state government to put a stop to the Mekedatu dam project
- The party requested the state and central governments to protect Sri Lankan Tamils’ rights
- The party sought protection for weavers and sorting out their problems
- The party condemned the DMK for not doing what they said in their election manifesto
- The party requested the DMK to solve the issues of teachers and government employees which they had promised in their election manifesto
