Edappadi K. Palaniswami

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Edappadi K. Palaniswami
Palaniswami in 2018
18th Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
11 May 2021
Deputy
Chief MinisterM. K. Stalin
Preceded byM. K. Stalin
7th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
In office
16 February 2017 – 6 May 2021
Governor
DeputyO. Panneerselvam
CabinetPalaniswami
Preceded byO. Panneerselvam
Succeeded byM. K. Stalin
Cabinet Minister
Government of Tamil Nadu
In office
23 May 2016 – 7 May 2021
MinisterPublic Works
Chief Minister
Preceded byO. Panneerselvam
Succeeded byE. V. Velu
ConstituencyEdappadi
In office
23 May 2015 – 8 August 2015
MinisterForests
Chief MinisterJ. Jayalalithaa
Preceded byM. S. M. Anandan
Succeeded byDindigul C. Sreenivasan
ConstituencyEdappadi
In office
16 May 2011 – 7 May 2021
MinisterHighways and Minor Ports
Chief Minister
Preceded byM. P. Saminathan
Succeeded byE. V. Velu
ConstituencyEdappadi
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office
10 March 1998 – 26 April 1999
Prime MinisterAtal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded byK. P. Ramalingam
Succeeded byM. Kannappan
ConstituencyTiruchengode
Member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
16 May 2011
Chief Minister
Preceded byV. Kaveri
ConstituencyEdappadi
In office
6 February 1989 – 13 May 1996
Chief Minister
Preceded byGovindaswamy
Succeeded byI. Ganesan
ConstituencyEdappadi
General Secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
Incumbent
Assumed office
11 July 2022
Deputy
Preceded byJ. Jayalalithaa[a]
Joint Coordinator of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
In office
21 August 2017 – 23 June 2022
Deputy
CoordinatorO. Panneerselvam
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Headquarters Secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
In office
8 June 2016 – 12 July 2022
General SecretaryJ. Jayalalithaa
Coordinators
Preceded byP. Palaniappan
Succeeded byS. P. Velumani
Personal details
BornPalaniswami
(1954-05-12) 12 May 1954 (age 71)[1]
Siluvampalayam, Salem district, Madras State, India
(present-day Tamil Nadu)[1]
PartyAll India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
SpouseRadha
Children1
Profession
  • Agriculturalist
  • politician
Awards
Nickname(s)Puratchi Thamizhar, Edappadiyaar, E.P.S.

Edappadi Karuppa Palaniswami, popularly known as EPS (born 12 May 1954) is an Indian politician who is the current leader of opposition in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly since May 2021. He served as the seventh chief minister of Tamil Nadu, from 2017 to 2021. He has been the general secretary of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) since 28 March 2023. Previously, he has served in various leadership roles in the AIADMK since 2016.

Born in 1954 in Salem district in the erstwhile Madras State, Palaniswami was engaged in agriculture before joining electoral politics in 1974. He has represented Edappadi since 2011 as Member of the Legislative Assembly, previously also serving from 1989 to 1996. In the 1998 Indian general election, he was elected as Member of Parliament of the Lok Sabha representing Tiruchengode. Post the 2011 assembly elections, he served as the minister of highways and minor ports in the Jayalalithaa cabinet. After the 2016 assembly elections, he served as the minister of public works in the cabinet.

Early and personal life

Palaniswami was born on 12 May 1954 to Karuppa Gounder and Thavasiyammal at Siluvampalayam, Salem district, Madras State (now Tamil Nadu).[1][2] After completing school, he completed B.Sc. zoology from Sri Vasavi College.[3][1] His parents were involved in agriculture and Palaniswami also chose to get involved in the same.[4][5] He has two siblings, a brother Govindraj and a sister Ranjitham. He is married to Radha and they have a son.[6][4][1]

Political career

Early years (1974–2010)

Palaniswami entered politics in 1974 enrolling himself as a volunteer in All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and served as the party's branch secretary of Koneripatti.[6] He faced defeat in his first electoral contest in the 1986 local body elections, a result that reflected a broader trend that year in rural areas traditionally considered strongholds of the AIADMK, marking a setback for the party under MGR against the opposition DMK. He was first elected to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly in 1989, representing Edappadi constituency, and won the re-election in 1991 from the same constituency.[7][8] He later rose within the party, becoming Salem North district joint secretary in 1990 and later became Its District Secretary in 1991. He subsequently served as the Chairman of the Temple Board (1992), Chairman of the Salem District Aavin Milk Producers’ Cooperative Union (1993), and Chairman of the Tamil Nadu Cement Corporation in 2001. [9] He lost from the same constituency in the 1996 assembly elections.[10] In the 1998 general election, he was elected Member of Parliament, representing Tiruchengodu constituency in the 12th Lok Sabha.[11] He subsequently lost the 1999 and 2004 general elections from the same constituency. He contested again from Edappadi in the 2006 assembly elections and lost.[12] He was appointed propaganda secretary of AIADMK in July 2006, replacing O. S. Manian and later as organising secretary in August 2007.[13]

Cabinet minister (2011–2017)

He was re-elected from Edappadi constituency in the 2011 assembly election.[14] He was appointed as the minister of highways and minor ports in the Jayalalithaa cabinet.[15] He served as the district secretary of AIADMK for Salem suburban district from June 2011 to April 2022.[16][17] In 2014, he was appointed as the member of the disciplinary committee of AIADMK.[18] He was again re-elected from the same constituency in the 2016 assembly election.[19] After 2016 assembly elections, he also served as the ministry of public works in the cabinet.[20] In 2016, he was appointed headquarters secretary of AIADMK, succeeding P. Palaniappan.[21]

Chief minister (2017–2021)

Palaniswami in 2018

Following the death of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on 5 December 2016, O. Panneerselvam was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on 6 December 2016. On 29 December 2016, V. K. Sasikala was unanimously elected as the General Secretary of the AIADMK by its general council. Subsequently, on 5 February 2017, she was chosen as its Chief Ministerial candidate. Panneerselvam resigned from the post of Chief Minister on 6 February 2017.[22][23]

While Sasikala awaited an invitation from the Governor to form the government, the Supreme Court of India delivered its verdict in the disproportionate assets case on 14 February 2017, convicting her. On the same day, the AIADMK party elected Edappadi K. Palaniswami as its leader of legislative, and he was subsequently chosen to serve as Chief Minister in place of Sasikala.[22][23] Palaniswami became the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on 16 February 2017 along with a 32-member cabinet and also held charge of home, prohibition and excise.[24][25]

In March 2017, he introduced the Kudimaramaththu scheme for restoring minor irrigation tanks and lakes in the state.[26] In response to the introduction of mandatory NEET exams starting in 2017, Palaniswami government formed a high-level committee led by M. Anandakrishnan in May that year to reform the Tamil Nadu school education system.[27] The school textbook syllabus and exam pattern for classes 1 to 12 were revised on par with CBSE standards in phases, starting from the 2018–19 academic year, to better prepare students for competitive exams.[28][29] On 24 April 2017, an attempted burglary occurred at one of the residences of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa at the Kodanad Estate. During the incident, a security guard was killed and another was injured.[30] Further, a suspect in the case, along with two family members of another suspect, died in a separate road accidents.[31]

In May 2018, police opened fire on protests against a copper plant owned by Vedanta that was allegedly polluting groundwater in Thoothukudi, killing 13 people.[32] Following these protest and police firing, the Government of Tamil Nadu ordered the permanent closure of the plant on 28 May 2018.[33][34][35]

On 15 August 2018, Palaniswami announced a 2% sub-quota in select government jobs and State Public Sector Undertakings for national, state, and international-level medal-winning sportspersons in games organised by recognised federations, later increasing it to 3% on 16 October 2018.[36][37] His administration was lauded for its preparedness and efforts to tackle the Cyclone Gaja that hit Tamil Nadu in November 2018.[38] In August 2019, Palaniswami introduced dedicated patrol vehicles (Amma patrol) to ascertain the security of women and children in public places.[39] On 19 November 2018, three AIADMK members convicted in the Dharmapuri bus burning case were released prematurely by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The Governor had earlier returned the file seeking remission, however, the state government resubmitted it, after which the Governor granted approval.[40]

In the 2019 Indian general election, AIADMK under the leadership of Palaniswami, contested in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and won only a single seat.[41][42] In 2019, Palaniswami launched the Yaadhum Oore programme aimed at garnering foreign investment in the state. He visited United States, United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates to promote the same.[43] His administration created new districts such as Tenkasi, Kallakurichi, Tirupattur, Ranipet and Chengalpattu in 2019, and Mayiladuthurai in 2020, by carving them out from existing districts.[44] After six decades of waiting by the people, Palaniswami laid the foundation stone for the ₹1,652-crore Athikadavu–Avinashi Groundwater Recharge and Drinking Water Supply Scheme on 28 February 2019, and the project work commenced on 25 December that year.[45][46]

In February 2020, the Government of Tamil Nadu declared the Kaveri delta region as a protected special agriculture zone.[47][48] In May 2020, the government passed an order for reservation of 7.5% of seats in government medical colleges to students from public schools while also announcing a plan to set up eleven new government medical colleges with 1,650 seats.[49][50][51] After the first three phases of excavation by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at Keezhadi between 2014 and 2017, the state department of archaeology took over further excavations in consultation with the ASI. In the fourth phase of excavations in 2017–18 done at a cost of ₹5.5 million (US$65,000), 5,820 artefacts and brick constructions dating back to the Sangam era were excavated. On 20 July 2020, Palaniswami laid the foundation for the Keezhadi museum in Sivaganga district to showcase the artefacts unearthed from Keezhadi excavation site.[52]

Under his governance, Tamil Nadu was rated among the top states based on a composite index in the context of sustainable development according to the Public Affairs Index released by the Public Affairs Center in October 2020.[53] During the coronavirus pandemic, Tamil Nadu was one of the few states that did not register negative growth.[54] Tamil Nadu was ranked as the best performing big state from the year 2018 to 2021 based on a study conducted by India Today.[55][56] On 5 January 2021, his government announced that the Thaipusam festival would be included in the list of public holidays every year.[57]

Tussle with Pannerselvam

The tussle between Palaniswami and Pannerselvam started in October 2020 when minister for milk and dairy development K. T. Rajenthra Bhalaji tweeted that the party should go for elections, with Palaniswami as the chief ministerial candidate. A day before Balaji’s tweet, cooperative minister Sellur K. Raju said, "MLAs will elect the chief minister" when AIADMK wins the 2021 elections.[58] Later, Panneerselvam made the announcement that Palaniswami would be the chief ministerial candidate of the AIADMK on 7 October 2020 at a meeting at the AIADMK office in Chennai.[59]

Leader of the opposition (2021–present)

AIADMK lost the 2021 assembly elections and Palaniswami resigned as the chief-minister on 6 May 2021.[60][61][62] He won for the third consecutive time from the Edappadi constituency and was elected as the leader of the opposition in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.[63][64]On 10 May 2021, the newly elected AIADMK MLAs convened to choose the new Leader of the Opposition, an important post equivalent to a cabinet minister. The meeting was inconclusive, with both Panneerselvam and Palaniswami staking claims to the post, while their supporters hurled charges against each other. This included a prolonged quarrel between the two sections of the party outside the party's head office, causing unrest. Supporters of Palaniswami believed that he should be the Leader of the Opposition due to the party's good performance in the election in western Tamil Nadu, the region he hails from; whereas, Panneerselvam's supporters felt that the party fared poorly in other regions of the state due to Palaniswami's wrong policies during his Chief Ministerial tenure.[65] Eventually, Palaniswami was elected as the Leader of the Opposition.[66]

In June 2022, district secretaries and senior party members of AIADMK spoke out against the “dual leadership” system of Palaniswami and O. Panneerselvam.[67] The supporters of Palaniswami pushed for the change in the party's leadership structure to appoint him as the general secretary of AIADIMK ahead of the general council meeting on 23 June 2022, which was expected to elect the leadership of the party.[68][69] In June 2022, Palaniswami wrote to Panneerselvam asserting the latter ceased to be the party coordinator as the amendments made to the party's bylaw in the 2021 December executive committee meeting were not recognised in the general council meeting held on 23 June.[70][71]

On 11 July 2022, the general council of AIADMK abolished the dual leadership model, appointing Palaniswami as the interim chief and expelled Panneerselvam and his loyalists from the primary memberships of the party for "anti-party" activities.[72][73][74][75] While on 17 August, the Madras High Court nullified the decisions of the AIADMK general council and ordered maintaining a status quo, a division bench later upheld the decisions and set aside the previous court order on 2 September 2022.[76][77] On 23 February 2023, the Supreme Court of India upheld the later order of the Madras High Court, effectively handing the leadership of the party to Palaniswami.[78] On 28 March 2023, AIADMK announced that Palaniswami was elected as the general secretary through party's general secretary election.[79][80] On 20 April 2023, the Election Commission of India recognised Palaniswami as the general secretary, acknowledging the amendments to the party constitution and changes to list of office-bearers.[81][82] On 20 August 2023, a conference was held at Madurai led by Palaniswami as a part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the founding of AIADMK.[83][84] On 25 September 2023, Palaniswami led AIADMK officially left the National Democratic Alliance ahead of the 2024 Indian general election.[85][86][87]

In the aftermath of the 2023 Chennai floods, Palaniswami demanded the chief minister of Tamil Nadu to release a white paper on the completed and ongoing stormwater drain work in Chennai and further criticised the state government for the lack of preparedness.[88][89] In the 2024 general election, Palaniswami led AIADMK formed an alliance with Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam, Puthiya Tamilagam, and Social Democratic Party of India and contested 36 seats in the state of Tamil Nadu and one each in the union territories of Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The party-led alliance failed to win any seats in the elections.[90] Palaniswami has been placed under Z+ scale category security by the Ministry of Home Affairs due to bomb threats since 5 July 2025.[91][92]

Ahead of the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, Palaniswami launched the Makkalai Kaappom, Thamizhagathai Meetpom (Let us protect the people and reclaim Tamil Nadu) statewide campaign tour covering all 234 constituencies in phases, starting from Mettupalayam in Coimbatore on 7 July 2025.[93][94]

Elections contested and positions held

Lok Sabha elections

Elections Lok Sabha Constituency Political party Result Vote percentage Opposition
Candidate Political party Vote percentage
199812thTiruchengodeAIADMKWon54.70%K. P. RamalingamDMK40.89%
199913thLost48.53%M. KannappanMDMK49.08%
200414th37.27%Subbulakshmi JagadeesanDMK58.02%

Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly elections

Elections Assembly Constituency Political party Result Vote percentage Opposition
Candidate Political party Vote percentage
19899thEdappadiAIADMK(J)Won33.08%L. PalanisamyDMK31.62%
199110thAIADMK58.24%P. Kolandai GounderPMK25.03%
199611thLost28.21%I. Ganesan37.68%
200613th41.06%V. Kaveri44.80%
201114thWon56.38%M. Karthe37.66%
201615th43.74%N. Annadurai25.12%
202116th65.97%Sampath KumarDMK28.04%
202617thTBA

Positions in Parliament of the Republic of India

Elections Position Elected constituency Term in office
Assumed office Left office Time in office
1998 Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha Tiruchengode 10 March 1998 26 April 1999 1 year, 47 days

Positions in Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly

Elections Position Elected constituency Term in office
Assumed office Left office Time in office
1989 Member of the Legislative Assembly Edappadi 6 February 1989 30 January 1991 1 year, 358 days
1991 1 July 1991 13 May 1996 4 years, 317 days
2011 Minister for Highways and Minor Ports 16 May 2011 21 May 2016 5 years, 5 days
2011 Minister for Forests 23 May 2015 8 August 2015 77 days
2016 Minister for Public Works, Highways and Minor Ports 23 May 2016 15 February 2017 268 days
2016 Chief Minister 16 February 2017 6 May 2021 4 years, 79 days
2021 Leader of the Opposition 11 May 2021 Incumbent 4 years, 328 days

Awards and honours

Honorary doctorates

No. Conferred in Conferred by Location Country Work Ref.
1 2019 Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute Tamil Nadu India For his outstanding contributions to public affairs [95]

Other honours

No. Image Decoration Field Conferred date Conferred by Ref.
1 Paul Harris Fellow Public Affairs 11 July 2020 The Rotary Foundation [96]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ V. K. Sasikala served as acting general secretary in the interim for 48 days.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Biographical Sketch of Member of 12th Lok Sabha". loksabhaph.nic.in. Archived from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  2. ↑ "Profile, Palaniswami". Government of Tamil Nadu. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  3. ↑ "Honorable Chief Minister, 15th assembly". Government of Tamil Nadu. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  4. 1 2 Thangavelu, Dharani (15 February 2017). "Who is Edappadi K. Palaniswami?". Mint. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017.
  5. ↑ Mariappan, Julie (13 October 2020). "Edappadi K Palaniswami Mother: Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami's mother Dhavusayammal dies aged 93". The Times of India. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  6. 1 2 Menon, Jaya (3 May 2021). "From jaggery farmer to Tamil Nadu CM, Edappadi K Palaniswami". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  7. ↑ 1989 Tamil Nadu Election Results (PDF) (Report). Election Commission of India. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 October 2010. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  8. ↑ 1991 Tamil Nadu Election Results (PDF) (Report). Election Commission of India. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  9. ↑ "`வெல்ல வியாபாரம் - முதல்வர் - எதிர்க்கட்சித் தலைவர்!' - எடப்பாடி பழனிசாமி கடந்து வந்த பாதை!". Vikatan (in Tamil). 10 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.Category:CS1 Tamil-language sources (ta)
  10. ↑ 1996 Election report (Report). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  11. ↑ 1998 General Election Results (Report). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  12. ↑ 2006 Election report (Report). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "Edapadi Palanisami is the opposition leader". Puthiya Thalaimurai (in Tamil). 10 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.Category:CS1 Tamil-language sources (ta)
  14. ↑ 2011 Election report (Report). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  15. ↑ "Council of Ministers, Government of Tamil Nadu". Government of Tamil Nadu. Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  16. ↑ "Jaya shuffles party posts of functionaries". News18. 30 June 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  17. ↑ "AIADMK organisational polls throw up no surprise". The Hindu. 27 April 2022. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
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  22. 1 2 Kannan, Ramya (18 February 2017). "Why is the AIADMK still in a crisis?". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  23. 1 2 The, Hindu (21 August 2017). "AIADMK after Jayalalithaa: from a split to merger in six months". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
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  31. ↑ Thomas, S. P. Saravanan & Wilson (29 April 2017). "Two accused in the Kodanad estate murder case meet with accidents, one killed". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  32. ↑ Safi, Michael; Karthikeyan, Divya (28 May 2018). "Indian copper plant shut down days after deadly protests". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  33. ↑ "Sterlite violence: 492 people questioned over 20 phases by Aruna Jagadeesan commission". The New Indian Express. 22 May 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  34. ↑ Rohit, T. k (28 May 2018). "Sterlite Copper to be permanently closed, says Tamil Nadu government". The Hindu. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  35. ↑ Thangavelu, Dharani (28 May 2018). "Tamil Nadu govt orders permanent shutdown of Sterlite copper plant in Thoothukudi". Mint. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  36. ↑ "Sportspersons to get 2% sub-quota in govt. jobs". The Hindu. 15 August 2018. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  37. ↑ "State increases sub-quota for sportspersons in government jobs". The Hindu. 16 October 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  38. ↑ "Opposition lauds govt.'s cyclone preparedness". The Hindu. 17 November 2018. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  39. ↑ "Tamil Nadu rolls out Amma Patrol vehicles to check crimes against women, kids". Indian Express. 27 August 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  40. ↑ Kumar, S. Vijay (19 November 2018). "AIADMK men convicted in Dharmapuri college bus burning case set free". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  41. ↑ Ramakrishnan, T.; Kumar, D. Suresh (12 January 2021). "People's reception gives us confidence that we will win a majority, says Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Palaniswami". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  42. ↑ 18. Partywise Seat Won Valid Votes Polled in Each State. Election Commission of India (Report). 11 October 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  43. ↑ "After tapping silicon valley, TN eyes Tamil diaspora in 38 countries". The New Indian Express. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  44. ↑ "Mayiladuthurai to become Tamil Nadu's 38th district". The News Minute. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  45. ↑ "Athikadavu-Avinashi Project gets environment clearance". newindianexpress. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  46. ↑ "After a 67-year-long wait, Athikadavu-Avinashi project in Tamil Nadu to be commissioned on August 17". The Hindu. 16 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  47. ↑ "Cauvery delta to be declared a protected agriculture zone". The Hindu. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  48. ↑ "Tamil Nadu declares Cauvery delta a protected agricultural zone". Hindustan Times. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  49. ↑ "Tamil Nadu Govt Passes Order for 7.5% Quota in Medical Admissions for Govt School Students". News18. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  50. ↑ "Tamil Nadu govt to set up medical colleges in 11 districts, add 1,650 seats". Business Standard. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  51. ↑ "Tamil Nadu has 3,400 MBBS seats now and will add 1,650 in future: CM". The Hindu. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  52. ↑ "Tamil Nadu CM lays foundation stone for Keeladi museum". The Times of India. 20 July 2020.
  53. ↑ "Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Goa best governed States: report". The Hindu. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  54. ↑ Menon, Amarnath (27 November 2021). "Best performing big state overall: Tamil Nadu". India Today. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  55. ↑ "T.N. tops in 'State of the States' study". The Hindu. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  56. ↑ "Tamil Nadu bags best performer award, again". The New Indian Express. 28 November 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
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  61. ↑ "EPS quits as CM, flurry of resignations at Secretariat". DT next. 4 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  62. ↑ "Edappadi K. Palaniswami elected AIADMK legislature party leader". The Hindu. 10 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  63. ↑ Mariappan, Julie (10 May 2021). "Edappadi K Palaniswami to be leader of opposition in Tamil Nadu assembly". The Times of India. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  64. ↑ "Edappadi Palaniswami elected as Leader of Opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly". The New Indian Express. 10 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  65. ↑ Jesudasan, Dennis S. (8 May 2021). "AIADMK unable to decide on Leader of Opposition post". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  66. ↑ "Edappadi Palaniswami elected as Leader of Opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly". newindianexpress. 10 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  67. ↑ "More voices emerge in favour of unitary leadership in AIADMK". The Hindu. 19 June 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  68. ↑ "Tamil Nadu: Can united front of the AIADMK survive?". The Times of India. 20 June 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  69. ↑ "EPS vs OPS: AIADMK grapples with internecine struggle for party control". The New Indian Express. 19 June 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  70. ↑ "Tamil Nadu: Indicating OPS is no longer AIADMK coordinator, EPS says his letter on local body polls invalid". Indian Express. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  71. ↑ "You are no longer AIADMK coordinator, EPS tells OPS". Hindustan Times. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  72. ↑ "AIADMK Tussle: Court Setback For OPS, Rival EPS Takes Charge". NDTV. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  73. ↑ "OPS Expelled from AIADMK Through Special Resolution After EPS Takes Control of Party". News18. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  74. ↑ "AIADMK Tussle: EPS Is New Boss, Rival OPS Expelled". NDTV. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  75. ↑ "AIADMK general council anoints Edappadi K Palaniswami as party interim general secretary". The Times of India. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  76. ↑ R. Sivakumar (17 August 2022). "OPS wins legal battle in Madras HC, dual leadership to continue in AIADMK for now". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  77. ↑ S, Mohamed Imranullah (2 September 2022). "AIADMK leadership tussle: Division Bench of Madras High Court reverses earlier order in favour of OPS". The Hindu. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  78. ↑ "Supreme Court rejects Paneerselvam's plea, Palaniswamy to continue as AIADMK general secretary". Indian Express. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  79. ↑ Mariappan, Julie (28 March 2023). "EPS becomes AIADMK general secretary; OPS petition rejected in Madras HC". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
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  81. ↑ AIADMK Amended Constitution dated 20.04.2023 (Report). Election Commission of India. 20 April 2023.
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  83. ↑ "AIADMK golden jubilee conference kicks off in Madurai". The Hindu. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
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  96. ↑ "EPS honoured with Paul Harris Fellow recognition". Indian Express. 11 July 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
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