Madras HC orders status quo ante on OPS expulsion, EPS elevation

The Madras high court ruled in favour of O Panneerselvam on Wednesday, turning the clock back to the position before the June 23 meeting of the All India Anna Dravid Munnetra Kazhagam’s general council meeting, which set the stage for the July 11 meeting of the council in which he was expelled and Edappadi Palaniswami was made interim general secretary. These are: a return to the position before June 23 when OPS was coordinator and EPS was joint coordinator; that both leaders have to agree on holding the general council and executive council meetings; that the meeting will have to be jointly called for by them to “decide the affairs of the party including amendment of the party constitution restoring single leadership”; that as long as at least 20% of the General Council is represented, the meeting should be held; that the meeting should be held within 30 days and with written advance notice; and that the two leaders can approach the court if they need more held, such as the assistance of a court-appointed commissioner for conducting the meeting. The AIADMK had a dual leadership model since J Jayalalithaa’s death in December 2016 when EPS and OPS merged their warring factions and functioned as joint coordinator and coordinator in the party. A subsequent meeting on July 11 saw OPS’s expulsion, along with several other leaders, including OPS’s son, and EPS’s return as interim general secretary.