AIADMK is orphaned after Jayalalithaa’s demise, second such crisis faced by the party in 3 decades

After J. Jailalithaa’s death, AIADMK is witnessing a hard time and this the second time in nearly three decades the party is facing such big challenge. The party had earlier plunged into turmoil following the death of its founder, M G Ramachandran (MGR).

Jayalalithaa, 68, who died on Monday, ran the party single-handedly. She left no successor that can match her calibre. The party is facing a huge problem of finding a widely accepted interim leader, who will hold it together. With the party supremo dead, AIADMK workers are rudderless.

Disappointment was seen on the faces of cadres, even as ministers and elected representatives zipped past the bylanes of Greams Road where Apollo Hospitals is located, and the party headquarters on Lloyds Road.

"We saw our Puratchi Thalaivar in her. She was our Amma and there was none parallel to her," said R Valli Raju, a party functionary from Alandur, who's been camping near Apollo Hospitals since Sunday night.

Political analyst N Sathyamoorthy said that for the party to stay united and strengthen itself, it has to be through a presidium of sub-regional leaders. "If anyone tries to outsmart the other, it would only lead to disintegration, as happened immediately after MGR," he said.