Driving Naari Programme launched in Chandigarh
Chennai, There was no happy note as AIADMK leader O. Panneerselvam and his party colleagues took oath as Tamil Nadu’s new Chief Minister and ministers here on Monday.
Panneerselvam, a staunch loyalist of the now jailed former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, choked and looked crestfallen as he read the oath of office and secrecy. He wiped away his tears.
Some legislators broke down. They included R. Vaithilingam, B. Valarmathi and P. Thangamani.
The atmosphere at the oath-taking ceremony was sombre. There were no celebratory noises at the event that came two days after Jayalalithaa was sent to jail for four years and fined Rs 100 crore for corruption.
Panneerselvam, 63, elected leader of the AIADMK legislature party Sunday evening. A farmer from Theni district, Panneerselvam, or OPS as he is known in the party, is a staunch loyalist of Jayalalithaa.
He entered politics in 1996 and became the head of a local body. In 2001, he was elected to the Assembly from Periakulam and became the Minister for Public Works Department.
He become the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in 2001 in similar circumstances. He was also Leader of the Opposition, when the AIADMK was voted out in 2006.
Panneerselvam and a few other AIADMK leaders met Jayalalithaa in the Bangalore Central Jail earlier Sunday.
A special court in Bangalore on Saturday sentenced Jayalalithaa to four years in prison and fined her Rs 100 crore for amassing wealth illegally, when she was the Chief Minister in 1991-96. -IANS
