The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the order of the Madras High Court which allowed Edappadi Palaniswami to continue as the interim general secretary of the AIADMK.
A bench of Justices Dinesh Maheswari and Hrishikesh Roy had reserved judgment on the matter on January 12.
The top court dismissed the petitions filed by O Paneerselvam.
The judgement came on a batch of pleas concerning amendments made to the party by-laws during the July 11, 2022, general council meeting.
‘Betrayers’ unmasked: EPS
Elated over the Supreme Court verdict allowing him to continue as the AIADMK's top leader, Palaniswami said the ruling has unmasked "betrayers" and the "DMK's B-team" that wanted to finish off his party.
The favourable apex court was a result of the 'divinity' of party stalwarts, the late Chief Ministers M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa, he said at a mass wedding ceremony in Madurai.
In a veiled attack at his rival O Panneerselvam, a grinning Palaniswami said "some Ettappars (a Tamil reference to betrayers) who worked as DMK's B-team and wanted to finish off the AIADMK have been unmasked today. Many said AIADMK has no future (in the wake of the 2021 electoral defeat and in-party squabbles) and all that has ended with verdicts by the Supreme Court and the High Court," he said.
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The AIADMK is no more "three or four," but was one united entity, he said, even as he exuded confidence of the party winning the February 27 Erode East by-poll.