The party of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa Jayaraman, a powerful Indian politician who died on Monday, appointed a loyalist to lead her southern state and keep her supporters together as thousands grieved on the streets.
Jayalalithaa, who served in the position for five terms, ran her All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) party with an iron hand and appointed no second line of leadership or successor.
An hour after her party announced her death from cardiac arrest late on Monday, Tamil Nadu Minister of Finance Ottakara Panneerselvam was sworn in to lead the economically important state, a base for auto firms Ford, Hyundai and Nissan and IT firm Cognizant.
Photo: Reuters
Panneerselvam had stood in for Jayalalithaa in the past, but made it clear he was not replacing her. He declined to take her place at the head of the Cabinet table while she was ill and instead had her picture placed there.
His rise to the top job in Tamil Nadu would help allay fears of a power struggle in the AIADMK, built entirely around the cult of Jayalalithaa.
Tens of thousands of people gathered outside a memorial hall in the state capital, Chennai, where Jayalalithaa’s body lay draped in an Indian national flag.
Many wailed and beat their chests in grief. The funeral was set for later yesterday.
Widely known as Amma, or “mother,” the former film star had a cult following and there were fears supporters would react erratically to her death.
A crowd had surged toward Apollo Hospital in Chennai, where she lay fighting for her life earlier on Monday, on rumors that she had died.
“The level of reverence she inspired, few other leaders had,” said Shashi Tharoor, a leader of the Indian National Congress party.
Jayalalithaa had gone into cardiac arrest on Sunday night following her admission with fever and dehydration in September, the hospital said. She was 68.
“She was not only our leader, she was our god,” said Paasarai Jeeva, a woman who said she had camped outside the hospital for a week.
State authorities ordered seven days of mourning, schools were shut and thousands of police deployed to prevent her supporters from creating public disorder or from harming themselves in grief.
In the past, when Jayalalithaa faced political problems, such as a jail term for corruption, her loyalists threatened to immolate themselves or lie down in streets for buses to run them over.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to fly to Chennai to mourn her death, along with several Cabinet members.
“Jayalalithaa ji’s connect with the citizens, concern for welfare of the poor, the women and marginalized will always be a source of inspiration,” Modi said.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress have little political presence in Tamil Nadu, despite years of efforts to build a base. AIADMK and bitter rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam are the main political groupings, alternating in power.
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