Cong joins DMK in seeking TN floor test

Chennai/ Puducherry: Seeking to assert his authority, sidelined AIADMK leader T T V Dinakaran on Wednesday axed four ministers from party posts while 18 MLAs loyal to him stayed put in a Puducherry resort, a day after they revolted against the K Palaniswami government threatening its survival. The Congress, on its part, pitched for a floor test in the assembly, a day after its ally, the DMK, made a similar demand, claiming that 22 AIADMK MLAs had submitted letters to Governor Ch Vidayasagar Rao expressing lack of confidence in Chief Minister E K Palaniswami.

In a bid to assert his authority, Dinakaran "relieved" four ministers — RB Uthayakumar, KC Veeramani, MR Vijayabaskar and R Kamaraj — of party posts. Revenue Minister Uthayakumar was removed as Secretary of the Puratchi Thalaivi Amma Peravai, while Vijayabaskar (Transport) was eased out as the party's Karur district secretary. He was replaced by former transport minister and Dinakaran loyalist MLA, V Senthil Balaji.

Dhinakaran relived ministers for commercial taxes and food, Veeramani and Kamaraj, of the posts of district secretaries of Vellore (West) and Thiruvarur, respectively. In separate statements, Dinakaran announced the appointments of his aides to these posts.

He also relieved the district secretaries of Chennai (South), Kancheepuram, Thiruvallore (West) and Pudukottai of their duties.

A day after meeting the Governor, the MLAs supporting the combative Dinakaran stayed put at a private resort in neighbouring Puducherry. They largely remained indoors. A few of them, including Andipatti MLA Thangatamilselvan, went out for morning walk at the beach there.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has dismissed a plea of jailed AIADMK leader V K Sasikala seeking review of its verdict convicting and sentencing her to a four-year jail term in a disproportionate assets case. The apex court also rejected her plea for an open court hearing of the review petitions. "We do not find any error in the common judgment impugned, much less an apparent error on the face of the record, so as to call for its review. The review petitions are, accordingly, dismissed," a bench of Justices S A Bobde and Amitava Roy.