CHANGE OF GUARD
Sasikala to become Tamil Nadu CM

AIADMK General Secretary V.K. Sasikala after attending the party's MLA's meeting | PTI
The AIADMK is V.K. Sasikala’s party. And now, the close aide of late Jayalalithaa is all set to control the government as well. She was formally elected the legislative party leader at a meeting of AIADMK MLAs on Sunday after incumbent Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam proposed her name to the top job.
The 59-year-old leader will take over the reins of the state government either on February 7 or 9.
The reshuffle in the bureaucracy in the Chief Minister’s Office and the tinkering in the party ranking during the last 48 hours were clear indicators of the clever move that contributed to her eventual elevation.
On Friday evening, senior bureaucrats in the Chief Minister’s Office—Sheela Balakrishnan and Venkatramanan—who were handpicked by Jayalalithaa, were given marching orders. On Wednesday, the party’s organisation structure was altered by bringing K.A. Sengottaiyan and Saidai Duraisamy as organising secretaries. Interestingly, both of them had been once ousted from their party portfolios by Jayalalithaa.
“These were clear indicators about Sasikala’s elevation to lead the government,” says a senior bureaucrat who doesn’t want to be quoted. In fact, the bureaucracy was happy with O. Panneerselvam as chief minister as he always remained accessible and had given officials a free hand in their job.
However, there are no strong dissent voices, not even from the opposition DMK or any other party in the state. Though Sasikala’s elevation was apparent, the seniors in the party and the government had not looked at it as imminent. “We knew she will take over. But we thought that it would take some time, at least six months, for her to be sworn in as the chief minister,” says a senior AIADMK MLA on condition of anonymity.
Apparently, the elevation of Sasikala was meticulously planned on December 5, soon after Jayalalithaa breathed her last at Apollo hospital in Chennai. It all began a week after the former chief minister was buried at Marina and Sasikala performed the last rites. The party seniors made a beeline to Jayalalithaa's Poes Garden residence requesting Sasikala to lead the party, and she shed tears holding the hands of those who visited her.
After two weeks, the party’s general council met and elected her as the general secretary unanimously. O. Panneerselvam and M. Thambidurai drove down at least 15 kms to handover the general council’s resolution copy and requested her to take over the party. On December 31, she visited the party office in a plush car. Clad in a dark green silk saree, she walked into the party office, took over the general secretary post and waved hands from the portico to the cheering crowd outside the party office.
She made an emotional speech asserting her loyalty to Amma and shed tears in an apparent attempt to gain sympathy from the party workers. The mere display of emotion gave ample indication that she is the one and only political heir of Jayalalithaa and would soon take over as the chief minister.
When she visited again the party office on MGR's birth anniversary, her style—right from her facial make over to her blouse, saree colour, draping style and even the way of carrying herself had completely changed. Her face make up was made up to look like Jayalalithaa. She walked slowly with measured steps like Jayalalithaa used to do.
All these changes were explicit declaration that AIADMK will be her party and that she will control the government for the next four years. With this, once again Tamil Nadu is all set to slip into iconic leadership and Sasikala will become the most influential person in the state, fortunately or unfortunately.
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