AIADMK 'united' again: OPS swears in Tamil Nadu Dy Chief Minister

DN Bureau

Former Tamil Nadu chief minister O. Panneerselvam (OPS) swears-in as the Deputy Chief Minister at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai.

O. Panneerselvam swears-in as the Deputy Chief Minister at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai
O. Panneerselvam swears-in as the Deputy Chief Minister at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai


Chennai: Former Tamil Nadu chief minister O. Panneerselvam (OPS) swears-in as the Deputy Chief Minister at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai, under the merged All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government in the state.

He is also given the additional charge of Finance and Housing Ministry.

Earlier, in what can be dubbed as a political turnaround in a state that was embroiled in a political drama till not so long ago, the two warring factions of the AIADMK - one led by Chief Minister E. Palanisamy (EPS) and the other by OPS - announced a merger, citing that "MGR always wanted to see us united, not split."

The striking part of the merger is that EPS has taken a backseat in the party, declaring OPS as the convenor; EPS will be the co-convenor.

EPS will continue to be the chief minister of Tamil Nadu.

Here are the allocated portfolios:

-    O Panneerselvam and K. Pandiarajan induced into the council of Ministers

-    O Panneerselvam swears in as Deputy Chief Minister

-    O Panneerselvam - Minister of Finance (hitherto held by D. Jeyakumar)

-    O Paneerselvam- Minister of Housing, Rural Housing and Housing Development, Slum Clearance Board and Accomodation Control, Town Planning, Urban Dvelopement and Chennai Metropoliton Development Authority (hitherto held by Udumalai K Radhakrishnan)

-    K Pandiarajan- Minister for Tamil Official Language and Tamil Culture (hitherto held by Sevvoor S. Ramachandran)

-    K Pandiarajan- Minister for Archeology (hitherto held by K.A. Sengottaiyan)

-    Udumalai K Radhakrishnan- Minister of Animal Husbandry (hitherto held by P. Balakrishna Reddy)

-    P. Balakrishna Reddy- Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development (hitherto held by K.A. Sengottaiyan)

-    C. Ve. Shanmugam- Minister of Mines and Minerals (hitherto held by M.C. Sampath), in addition to subject presently held by him (Law Ministry)

Earlier in the day, EPS, while addressing a press briefing here, said that there will be 11 people in a committee to co-ordinate in the merger.

There was no mention of jailed AIADMK general secretary V.K. Sasikala in the press statement.

"We will get the party symbol back and will defeat the enemy. Jayalalithaa had said before that after me, the AIADMK will be there for 100 years. We all will make it sure," he added.

"We all are children of one mother, and Amma (Jayalalithaa) is that one mother."

Earlier, Panneerselvam had announced that the AIADMK would be one once again, while also adding that the Sasikala clan would not be a part of the party. (With ANI inputs)

 










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