Ahead of Tamil Nadu polls, Sasikala floats new political party

With barely two months to go for the Tamil Nadu polls, VK Sasikala, a former aide of late Chief Minister and AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa, announced the launch of a new political party. The announcement was made at a public meeting in the Ramanathapuram district, on Jayalalithaa's birth anniversary(24 Feb). Sasikala said that she would reveal the name of her party soon, while revealing a party flag bearing the black, white, and red colours, like that of the AIADMK flag.

Speaking at the event, Sasikala said she was going to start a new party for the people of Tamil Nadu. She elaborated that her party would follow the path of Dravidian political leaders CN Annadurai, MG Ramachandran, and J Jayalalithaa, and serve the common people of Tamil Nadu. Notably, her party flag also bears the faces of the aforementioned leaders, who had served as Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu.

While she did not specify whom she was referring to, Sasikala also announced that her party would root out enemies and traitors. This reference is widely seen as an attack on AIADMK leader Edappadi Palaniswami. Palaniswami was once handpicked by Sasikala to lead the Tamil Nadu Government as Chief Minister, but he later ousted her from the party when Sasikala was in jail for a corruption case. Since then, Palaniswami has been firm against accepting Sasikala or her family members into the AIADMK.

A member of the Thevar community, which is influential in southern Tamil Nadu, Sasikala had been a close confidante of Jayalalithaa for over three decades. This proximity to power earned her significant influence. While she remained a powerful presence behind the scenes during Jayalalithaa's tenure, Sasikala formally stepped into politics after Jayalalithaa's demise in December 2016. She was elevated as the AIADMK General Secretary, which is the top post in the party, and had also made attempts to become the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

However, Sasikala's political ambitions were short-lived, as dramatic developments altered her political fortunes. In 2017, she was convicted in a disproportionate assets case and was sentenced to four years in prison. While in prison, she was expelled from the AIADMK. Legal hurdles stemming from her conviction in the graft case also prohibit her from contesting in the elections until 2027.