When the new date of the next round of the ADMK's General Council meeting was fixed as July 11 in the meeting that was held on June 23, Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS), with the strong backing of the party's functionaries, decided not to miss the upcoming chance as he was affirmed that this time, he would draw a roadmap for his political elevation. When July 11 was nearing, tensions were pervasive in the party and with a good audience to see his drama, EPS was planning to cement his base as strong as how it was for Jayalalithaa. 

Jayalalithaa was the master of ADMK during her reign and five years later, the party has now passed a resolution to revive the post of General Secretary and accepting EPS as Jayalalithaa's successor, the party has appointed him as the interim General Secretary and it is apparent that he has become the party's high command though his rival OPS is playing his own drama against the elevation of EPS. While the party had a nail-biting wait for the July 11 meeting, EPS was all packed up to strengthen his political trajectory and unveil an unexpected twist. 

According to our sources, when the party held back-to-back parleys to convince OPS to back EPS as the General Secretary, the EPS faction has given assurance to OPS that he would be appointed as the Deputy General Secretary along with his existing posts of Treasurer and Deputy Opposition leader in the assembly. However, OPS stood steady with his demand that either the current dual leadership should remain or he should be made General Secretary. 

As part of his promises, EPS has conveyed to OPS that the BJP will again win the 2024 Lok Sabha polls during which his son Ravindranath Kumar would be made a Union Minister. However, OPS asked EPS to speak with the BJP to appoint his son as the Union Minister as the BJP has two more years left in its current term. As per the sources, OPS wasn't ready to give away his post and back EPS as the General Secretary as the former was clear that he would stand before EPS asking for the party's ticket for him and for his son to contest in the elections. 

OPS has also denied the assurances as any events of losing power would be a litmus test for him in his community, which has a vital vote bank in the state. When the parleys failed with OPS not backing EPS this time, it was when EPS mulled expelling OPS completely from the party. Our sources say that though OPS was the Chief Coordinator, what benefitted EPS to execute his plan was the lack of numbers behind OPS. Most of the sections of the party including MLAs, MPs, senior leaders, and district secretaries had strongly supported EPS, the latter thought that his plan to expel OPS from the party won't have an adverse impact on the party. 

The June 23 meeting

When EPS gained the support of the leaders from the community of OPS, he moved his plan further as he was assaying to become the party's face after Jayalalithaa. What has become a crucial prospect for EPS to remove OPS from the party was the anti-OPS wave in the General Council meeting that was held on June 23. EPS was planning to pass the resolution of becoming the ADMK's General Secretary in this meeting, his plan was stalled by an early-morning verdict from the Madras High Court. 

In the wake of the sudden setback, the meeting was concluded with passing no resolutions. In the packed hall, there was no breather for OPS as the air was completely against him. OPS and his supporters had boycotted the meeting and when OPS left the stage, a major section of cadres had raised slogans against OPS and there were attempts to attack him and these events were apparent to EPS that the party has been turning against OPS. 

OPS, who was once a man Friday for Jayalalithaa, was then labelled as ADMK's betrayer and this scale of turmoil against OPS had made the task easy for EPS. When the next meeting was scheduled on July 11, EPS and his faction had prepared a resolution to oust OPS from the party by disseminating him as the party's betrayer.

Legal backing for EPS 

After winning the case in the high court to conduct the meeting on July 11 - Monday, the ADMK has convened the General Council meeting in Vanagaram, Chennai. The meeting was boycotted by OPS and his supporters who had sieged the ADMK office in Royapettah. With the legal backing from the court, EPS has arrived at the venue with the affirmed mind that he should come out of the venue with a major elevation for him in the party. 

The label of a betrayer

The meeting commenced at around 9.15 am on Monday and the party has passed 16 resolutions in the meeting. The party has appointed EPS as the interim General Secretary and it has further removed the powers of OPS and handed them over to EPS and these resolutions were hailed by the functionaries. Following Palaniswami's elevation as the party's interim General Secretary, the EPS faction has begun to unfold the resolution of expelling OPS from the party in the prevailing label of the 'betrayer of the party'. 

While OPS has sieged the ADMK office and a violent clash has erupted against the cadres, EPS on the other hand has kept his show running with a good audience. As per the sources, it has appeared that all the leaders in the EPS camp have come with the mind of toasting OPS, though their tones were different. With the new beginning for EPS, his camp has executed its plan of closing the gates of command to OPS.

Several leaders have come down hard on OPS. Speaking at the General Council meeting, senior ADMK leader KP Munusamy said that a separate chair has been reserved for OPS in the meeting. However, OPS has boycotted the meeting and gone to the ADMK office with the goons. Senior leader and former minister Thangamani said, "OPS has been working to destroy this political movement. We must think whether the party needs someone like him who betrayed the party." 

According to reports, the members of the General Council had also demanded to remove OPS from the party. Speaking after presenting the resolution to expel OPS, senior ADMK leader Natham Viswanathan said, "O Panneerselvam has a dual face. He doesn't want anyone to have a good life. He is jealous and I am happy that he is out now." "We won't take rest till we make Edappadi Palaniswami the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu", Viswanathan added. 

The resolution was passed and the party has announced that OPS has been expelled from the party and he is removed from all the posts including the post of Treasurer. EPS has successfully unfolded his plan of outsing OPS from the party, which has spurred unrest from the OPS camp and speaking to the reporters, O Panneerselvam said that no one can remove him from the party. The new beginning of what has become a tumult episode in the unending drama of the leadership crisis has deeply disturbed the hardcore cadres of ADMK, who were hoping for constructive leadership in the party. For them, though EPS has won the race of becoming the supremo of the party, both the leaders have largely damaged the party's foundation and the legacy that was built by the past leaders- MGR and Jayalalithaa.