Will fight till last breath against 'chinnamma's elevation: Sasikala Pushpa
Chennai: A day after senior All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) members met Sasikala Natarajan to convince her to take charge, expelled lawmaker Sasikala Pushpa on Sunday said that she would fight till her last breath to ensure that former chief minister Jayalalithaa's confidante doesn't become the party general secretary.
She alleged that the cadre and people feel it would be unfair to elect a person like Natarajan to the party.
"Everyone believes that something happened to Amma (Jayalalithaa) just because of this group. Some foul play happened in her death. So, in this situation how can one say that she can be the future leader because she is not even a member, how can she be a general secretary, it would be unfair to call her the general secretary," Pushpa told ANI.
When asked about the recent support Natarajan has received from senior members like Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker Thambi Durai and Chief Minister O. Paneerselvam, Pushpa said, "Senior leaders are being threatened by her family; everyone feels that. They are being compelled to accept her as the general secretary. Who is that lady to take the constitutional authority of the party? Sasikala has been calling the shots ever since Jayalalithaa was ill, even I was not allowed to attend the funeral. From the bottom of the heart no one likes Sasikala Natrajan."
"Just because she was with Jayalalithaa for 35 years, it is not the only criteria. Even my servant is with me for 25 years. However, it doesn't mean that she would become the homemaker of my house," she added.
Pushpa expressed hope that the Election Commission and Prime Minister Narendra Modi would guide the party in the right direction.
"AIADMK is a very big party, it is not easy to choose a general secretary on its own. I think the Election Commission and PM Modi will take this matter in the right way because the people of Tamil Nadu have greater concern on this issue. So just because few members of the party are requesting her to take charge of the party, it doesn't mean she will become one," she said.
"People of Tamil Nadu will not accept the leadership of any other member other than senior members who are there. Till my last breath is there I will fight to stop it," she added.
Senior functionaries of the AIADMK met Sasikala on Saturday, requesting her to lead the party.
AIADMK spokesperson, C. Ponnaiyan said the party would have a new general secretary soon and a decision in this regard would be unanimous.
Rumours are doing rounds that if the decision is unanimous, then Sasikala would assume the role of new party chief.
Jayalalithaa who passed away on Monday evening after suffering cardiac arrest was the party's general secretary from 1989 to 2016.
