Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Jayalalithaa’s long-time aide and expelled from AIADMK, VK Sasikala on Friday announced the name of her new political party — All India Puratchi Thalaivar Makkal Munetra Kazhagam — and said its symbol will be a “coconut tree farm”, as the political ground heats up in poll-bound Tamil Nadu, where multiple stakeholders are eyeing their fortunes.She said the party symbol represents “unity” and that the organisation would function like a “joint family”. Sasikala also said the party would field candidates in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in the upcoming assembly elections. “I am in a situation similar to that of our leader (M G Ramachandran), who once joined a party started by a cadre,” she said, referring to her decision to associate herself with a party launched by one of her supporters.She unveiled the party flag at Kamuthi in Ramanathapuram district on the birth anniversary of former AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa. The flag carries black, white and red colours, with portraits of former chief ministers C N Annadurai, M G Ramachandran (MGR) and Jayalalithaa at the centre.Sasikala will now enter the political battlefield with her own brigade in the tightly contested race, which already features several veterans, including some of her former party colleagues.
The key players in the Tamil Nadu elections include MK Stalin, Edappadi Palaniswamy and O Panneerselvam. Meanwhile, national parties like the BJP and the Congress are also looking to expand their footprints in the state.
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