A division bench of Madras HC heard an appeal in the matter in the early hours of Thursday, hours after a single-judge court declined to block the AIADMK from changing its rules in a general council meeting, and stated the party couldn’t make any decisions regarding unitary leadership at the important meeting later today.
The division bench opted to hear the appeal after midnight; the hearing began about 2 a.m. Thursday, and the decision was issued at 5 a.m.
The division bench ruling came as a huge relief to AIADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam, as his opposition camp, headed by joint coordinator Edappadi K Palaniswami, was preparing to make major changes in the way the party leadership functions during today’s general council (GC) meeting.
On Wednesday, Justice Krishnan Ramasamy denied the petitions but did not halt the GC meeting or the planned revisions. The one-judge bench said that it was up to the collective general council to determine how it should function and that it was not the court’s responsibility to advise the council on which resolutions could and should be enacted.
“It is well settled that in matters regarding the internal problems of an association/political party, the courts ordinarily do not intrude, leaving the door open to the association/party and its representatives to pass rulings and frame a specific by-law, rule, or regulation for administrative convenience of the party,” Justice Ramaswamy wrote. Any choice is fully within the general council’s collective wisdom, and this court cannot compel the members to behave in a specific way.”
Shanmugam, a member of the AIADMK’s general counsel, filed an appeal late at night after the single bench judgment. The Madras High Court’s Justices M Duraiswamy and Sunder Mohan decided to hear the matter after midnight. The hearing began at 2 a.m. at Justice Duraiswamy’s apartment.
The division bench ruling was issued at 5 a.m., preventing the party’s general council from making any decisions regarding unitary leadership, a setback for Palaniswami, who controls 90% of the party and wants the party to do away with dual leadership and has just one leader.
