It was a highly confident TTV Dhinakaran who spoke to the media gathered outside Bengaluru Central jail. The AIADMK Deputy General Secretary had visited his aunt and party chief VK Sasikala, just two days after he announced that he will be returning to active politics.
Immediately after his announcement, the faction led by Edappadi Palaniswami called for a meeting at the AIADMK headquarters with top ministers. Following discussions, Finance Minster D Jayakumar stated that Edappadi Palaniswami will remain the leader of both the party and the government.
When asked about this however, Dhinakaran laughed it off saying, "We can't keep replying to everything that Jayakumar says."
He further claimed that he has the support of 122 MLAs in the party. "Close to 40 of them come visit me personally. The others keep in touch through the phone," he stated.
It is no secret that the ruling government is on edge over TTV’s decision to come back to the helm of affairs in the party.
"The merger which was supposed to take place did not happen. My first duty is to ensure the party functions properly and to strengthen it. The current leaders have certain fears that are making them talk this way. They need to leave this fear behind and start functioning again," TTV stated.