Cyclone Michaung has delayed by a day, the verdict to be delivered by the Madras High Court on three appeal suits as well as a civil revision petition filed by V.K. Sasikala in 2022, claiming a right over the post of AIADMK general secretary.
A Division Bench of Justices R. Subramanian and N. Senthilkumar were scheduled to deliver the verdict on Monday, December 4, 2023 but the day ended up being declared a holiday for all courts in Chennai on account of incessant rains coupled with gusty winds due to the Cyclone.
After the death of the party’s general secretary Jayalalithaa on December 5, 2016, then presidium chairman E. Madhusudhanan called for an emergent general council meeting on December 29, 2016 when it was decided to appoint Ms. Sasikala as an interim general secretary. She assumed office the next day but ended up going to jail on February 17, 2017 after the Supreme Court convicted her in a disproportionate assets case. Thereafter, factional disputes arose in the party leading to the initiation of proceedings before the Election Commission of India.
On September 12, 2017 the party’s general council met again and decided to remove Ms. Sasikala from the post of interim general secretary and recall all decisions taken by her pursuant to the appointment. It was also decided that the party would function under dual leadership.
Accordingly, O. Panneerselvam and Edappadi K. Palaniswami were appointed as Coordinator and Joint Coordinator respectively. Ms. Sasikala filed a civil suit challenging her removal from the post on the ground that the very convening of the September 12, 2017 meeting was illegal.
In 2021, Mr. Panneerselvam, Mr. Palaniswami and another party leader S. Semmalai took out three independent applications urging an Additional City Civil Court in Chennai to reject the plaint filed by Ms. Sasikala in the civil suit. She too filed an application for making certain amendments in her plaint.
On April 11, 2022, the civil court allowed the three applications for rejection of the plaint and dismissed the application for carrying out the amendments leading to the present appeal suits and civil revision petition. Senior Counsel G. Rajagopal argued the matter for the appellant before the Division Bench.
He contended that the December 29, 2016 general council resolution appointing the appellant as interim general secretary of the party must be construed to be in force till date since the subsequent general council meet in September 2017 was convened in violation of the party bylaws.
On the other hand, Senior Counsel Vijay Narayan, representing Mr. Palaniswami, contended that many developments had taken place since 2016 and that the party had now returned to single leadership pursuant to the election of his client as the general secretary by the primary members.
He urged the court to take note of those developments and dismiss the appeal suits as well as the civil revision petition. The judges recorded the submissions and reserved their verdict on November 6, 2023 after questioning whether the bylaws provide for appointment of interim general secretary at all.
