Tamil Nadu: AIADMK proposes, Sasikala disposes of Panneerselvam; Twitter rebounds with 'paneer' jokes

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) general secretary Sasikala Natarajan — referred to as Chinnamma by people within the party — late on Tuesday night removed former Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam from the post of party treasurer, signalling the beginning of what could be a bitter political battle that tears the AIADMK apart.

Meanwhile, Twitter has been flooded with jokes about Paneer — a variety of cottage cheese whose name rhymes with the first part of Panneerselvam's name.

Also read: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister: From disproportionate assets case to PIL in Supreme Court, here are 5 things going against Sasikala

Everything seemed to have settled down to normal after the death of former TN chief minister and AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa, with Amma's closest aide Sasikala Natarajan taking over the reins of the party as Chinnamma, and Panneerselvam being installed as the chief minister. 

However, there seemed to be some stirrings within the party, with large sections wanting that Sasikala take over the chief minister's chair as well. That was what the plan was when AIADMK MLAs, at a meeting at the party headquarters on Sunday, February 5, elected Sasikala as their Legislative Party leader.

Now, the norm is the Legislative Party leader of the ruling political outfit becomes the chief minister. However, a number of hurdles sat in Sasikala's way, not the least of which was opposition from some section of the masses who saw an unelected Sasikala as becoming chief minister due to her political connections alone. 

Panneerselvam, who had tendered his resignation as TN chief minister, saw this as an opportunity to regain power, and there were some theatrics late on tuesday night when he went to the memorial of Jayalalithaa and "meditated." However, Sasikala, in a meeting of AIADMK MLAs and other members, cut Panneerselvam's role within the party even further, thereby limiting the amount of clout he sways within the AIADMK. 

Nevertheless, Panneerselvam still has enough influence within the party to break away and form a new political outfit, which can help the AIADMK's arch-rival — the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). That is why, when Panneerselvam showed his opposition to Sasikala, he was immediately dubbed an "agent" of the DMK. 

'Paneer' jokes on Twitter

Meanwhile, Twitter was flushed with jokes on Paneer. Here's one from author and blogger Arnab Ray aka GreatBong: 

Here are some more from other sources: