OPS, Sasikala meet governor; Rao's decision today

AIADMK general secretary VK Sasikala on Thursday staked claim to form the government during a 40-minute meeting with Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao, who arrived in the city on Thursday afternoon.

Likewise, caretaker Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on Thursday held a brief meeting with Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao amid the political uncertainty in the state and said that "good things will happen" but did not elaborate.

Depending on how many of the sitting MLAs each side could garner, several outcomes are possible.

At this point, the Governor would seek to determine which of the two groups deserves to be sworn in, and once he does so, the role of the Speaker of the Assembly, P. Dhanapal, will be key: it is the Speaker who would likely decide which faction’s whip is valid.

Rao flew down by an afternoon flight from Mumbai and drove straight to the Raj Bhavan. Panneerselvam, accompanied by AIADMK presidium chairman E Madhusudanan, P H Pandian, and his supporters, met Rao at 5pm and submitted his representation.

Two hours later, Sasikala, accompanied by 10 ministers, met the governor to stake her claim, but not before paying a visit to the Jayalalithaa memorial on the Marina and paying tributes.