A day after Madras High Court’s decision to strike down the AIADMK’s move to name Edappadi K Palaniswamy (EPS) as the interim General Secretary, a defiant EPS on Thursday declined the olive branch extended by rival O Pannerselvam (OPS) for joint leadership and said that he will move the division bench challenging the latest single bench order.

Earlier in the day, OPS asked EPS to go back to the earlier arrangement of joint leadership within the party. The recent judgement has come as a shot in the arm for OPS, who has now reached out to EPS and said “let bygones be bygones.” Pointing out at the achievements under the joint-leadership, OPS said, “After Amma’s (late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa) death (in December 2016), dear brother Palaniswami became CM and we travelled along extending good cooperation. Many democratic duties were discharged by us.”

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Referring to the posts of a coordinator (OPS) and joint-coordinator (EPS) created a year after Jayalalithaa’s death, OPS said that the move was a collective decision taken by all party workers. “After Amma’s death, Dharmayudham was undertaken (by him against deposed leader VK Sasikala and her family) and as per the wishes of party workers and leaders, it was decided as a policy that AIADMK will function under joint leadership,” he told the media.

“Let bygones be bygones…would never say it affected us…1.5 crore party workers and the people who desire the good rule of MGR and Amma want this movement to remain united. Without holding any grudges of the past bitterness, we should throw them away (as) the party’s unity should be the sole idea,” he added.

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The single-judge bench of the Madras HC on Wednesday decided to overturn the sweeping decisions undertaken in the July 11 general council meet of the party where it was decided to do away with the joint posts, and called the meeting invalid. In its order, the HC asked the party to maintain the status-quo as it existed on June 23 and called for a fresh council meeting to retain the earlier posts of a coordinator and a joint coordinator. EPS had claimed that OPS has been siding with the ruling DMK party and asked for a unified leadership in the face of an ambitious ally in BJP in the state.