No internal differences, positive result on AIADMK merger in a day or two: O Panneerselvam

Chennai: Former Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam on Saturday said talks on the merger of the two AIADMK factions are progressing fine.

After meeting AIADMK (Puratchi Thalaivi Amma) faction, whch is led by him, Panneerselvam said, "The talks are going on smoothly. A positive result is expected in a day or two."

Panneerselvam said in a couple of days a good decision will be taken and "there are no internal differences".

The AIADMK broke into three factions after Jayalalithaa`s death in December 2016.

The first to revolt against the party`s general secretary and now jailed VK Sasikala was Panneerselvam.

The other two factions that emerged later are led by Chief Minister Palaniswami and deputy general secretary TTV Dinakaran, a nephew of Sasikala.

The much expected merger last night had failed to come off following reported divergent views among the members of the OPS faction.

This included the demand of certain members for a CBI inquiry into late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's death as against the announcement of an inquiry commission to be headed by a retired High Court judge.

There were also reports of hard bargaining on party and cabinet posts by Palaniswami-led AIADMK (Amma) faction and the OPS group.

Meanwhile, sidelined Dhinakaran held deliberations with supporters at his residence here.

Dhinakaran, who spoke to reporters on Friday after meeting his aunt and party general secretary Sasikala at a Bengaluru jail on her birthday, had downplayed the expected merger of the AIADMK factions saying it would not have any longevity and that it was not a 'setback' to him.

The Panneerselvam faction had laid three conditions for an AIADMK merger: keeping out Sasikala and her family members, ordering a judicial probe into the death of Jayalalithaa and converting Jayalalithaa`s residence into a memorial.

Some days back the Panneerselvam faction passed a resolution declaring the appointment of Dinakaran as Deputy General Secretary as "improper, unacceptable and invalid".

The resolution was challenged by Dinakaran, who is said to have the support of around 20 legislators.

The resolution also said that Sasikala`s own appointment as General Secretary was under the scrutiny of the Election Commission.