Can Sasikala be the new Amma of AIADMK and Tamil Nadu?
It's only a matter of time before Sasikala Natarajan aka Chinnamma is named the leader of the party by the AIADMK. Seen as the conscience of the late J Jayalalithaa, she has already been spelling out the party's strategy for the past one week.
Chinnamma has had meetings with the top brass in the administration, and all this from the famous Poes Garden address.
This, combined with the shutting out of Jaya's relatives from Poes Garden, sends out a clear signal that Sasikala and nobody else is the "chosen" one.
However, the future may throw up some hurdles in her path to ascendancy in Tamil Nadu politics. No, the challenge is not likely to come from chief minister O Panneerselvam, and foreseeably, not from the Centre - where the AIADMK's combined strength of 59 Upper and Lower House MPs would ensure that she remains the cynosure of all parties, especially the ruling NDA combine.
The first hurdle would probably be acquiring control over Jaya's properties. In the absence of a will, although some say Jaya has left one, there will be, in all likelihood, a legal battle. And if there is a will, it has to be produced before a court and that would mean a long-drawn legal battle.
Secondly, her coterie of relatives, who are anyway entrenched in powerful positions across the state, may try to dig their claws into the administration. In such a scenario, public faith may take a hit if governance suffers.
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| OPS knows that now the AIADMK leadership is behind Chinnamma and Jaya is still fresh in everyone's mind. |
The third, and very apparent, threat is from the powerful Gounder community leader and PWD & highways minister Edappadi K Palanisamy. Even though he may not want to pose a threat to Chinnamma, the community wanted their leader to be at the helm of affairs in the state - a proposal which Sasikala nipped at the bud.
It won't be long before the Gounders retaliate, more so as both Sasikala and the chief minister belong to the Thevar community. Jaya's strong rule kept the intra-community undercurrents under check. How much Sasikala succeeds in balancing them will be the key to her political success.
The dark horse, as far as Chinnamma is concerned, may be Paneerselvam too. His handling of the Cyclone Vardah crisis showed us that OPS, as he is fondly called, can think on his feet and act decisively.
OPS knows that now the AIADMK leadership is behind Chinnamma and Jaya is still fresh in everyone's mind. Although he is not expected to go against Sasikala, the situation may change in the next six months as OPS's own image grows and the ground situation starts to change.
Will Chinnamma succeed in reining in one and all and continuing the legacy of J Jayalalithaa - a self admittedly reluctant, but very successful politician? We will be watching.