Former interim general secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) V.K. Sasikala has preferred an appeal before the Madras High Court against an Additional City Civil Court’s April 11 order rejecting her plaint which sought a declaration that her removal from the post on September 12, 2017 is illegal and void.
The appeal suit is expected to be listed before Justice R.N. Manjula this week. It had been preferred against a common order passed by Additional District Judge J. Sridevi, who had allowed applications filed by AIADMK leaders Edappadi K. Palaniswami, O. Pannneerselvam (now expelled) and S. Semmalai to reject her plaint.
The judge had also simultaneously dismissed an application preferred by Ms. Sasikala to amend the plaint and include new reliefs, including a declaration that she continues to be the general secretary of the party and the creation of the posts of coordinator and co-coordinator on September 12, 2017 was illegal.
Ms. Sridevi pointed out that after the death of the party’s general secretary Jayalalithaa on December 5, 2016, the then presidium chairman E. Madhusudhanan called for a general council meeting on December 29, 2016. The council decided to appoint Ms. Sasikala as the interim general secretary, and accordingly, she assumed office the next day.
In March 2017, there arose a factional dispute in the party with a team led by Mr. Panneerselvam raising a dispute before the Election Commission of India (ECI) against Ms. Sasikala. The commission passed an interim order on March 22, 2017, restraining both the factions from using the name of the AIADMK and also froze the ‘two leaves’ symbol.
Therefore, the faction led by Ms. Sasikala called itself AIADMK-Amma and the one led by Mr. Panneerselvam named itself as AIADMK-Puratchi Thalaivi Amma for the purpose of contesting in the byelection held at Radhakrishnan Nagar, an Assembly constituency seat that fell vacant due to the death of Jayalalithaa in 2017.
Then, Ms. Sasikala filed a joint civil suit before the High Court along with AIADMK-Amma and T.T.V. Dhinakaran, in his reported capacity as deputy general secretary, seeking a declaration that the resolutions passed against them at the September 12, 2017 general council meet were illegal, and the convening of the meet itself was improper.
When the suit was pending, the ECI passed final orders on November 23, 2017 recognising the joint leadership of Mr. Palaniswami and Mr. Panneerselvam in the party. The ECI’s order was put to challenge but was confirmed by the Delhi High Court as well as the Supreme Court, which dismissed the appeal.
Thereafter, in 2018, the High Court ordered the transfer of the suit to the city civil court in view of increase in pecuniary jurisdiction but it got transferred only in March 2021, when Mr. Dhinakaran withdrew from the case. On the other hand, Ms. Sasikala filed an application to amend her prayers as well as the cause title.
She urged the court to remove the name of AIADMK-Amma from the list of plaintiffs and accept her as the sole plaintiff in the suit besides making the AIADMK as the first defendant. However, the Additional City Civil Court rejected her plea on the ground that such amendments would lead to confusion and change the character of the suit and, hence, the present appeal.
