Chennai: Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam is meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Delhi on Thursday morning. It would be a courtesy call and his first visit to PM since becoming the Deputy CM after the merger of his faction of the AIADMK with the one led by Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami.
The merger had the ‘blessings’ of the PM, who was keen on political stability in Tamil Nadu after the tragic demise of AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa.
“OPS had sought an appointment with the PM for a courtesy call. The PMO fixed the appointment at 11 a.m. Thursday”, said a party senior.
Accompanying OPS would be Dr V. Maitreyan, MP, former minister K.P. Munusami and former MP Manoj Pandian. Speaking to reporters at the airport here, Maitreyan insisted there were no sleeper cells in the AIADMK (as claimed by TTV Dhinakaran) and “just because he voiced an opinion, Minister Sellur Raju cannot be deemed as sleeper cell”.
When asked about the DMK filing cases against the AIADMK and the government, Maitreyan quipped, “The DMK has a strong advocates’ wing and so they are going on filing cases. Let them stay busy in the courts and we will continue to work for people”. “Facing court cases is something unavoidable for a politician. Jayalalithaa had to battle several cases through her career”, said the AIADMK MP.
