Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami announced that a commission headed by a retired judge will investigate the death of former chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

Additionally, the chief minister has announced that Veda Nilayam, the Poes Garden residence of Jayalalithaa, will be turned into a memorial dedicated to her life and career.

Both the decisions were major demands raised by the AIADMK faction led by former CM O Panneerselvam ahead of the merger of the two groups, the other one led by Palaniswami. A factional war had broken out soon within the party after the death of Jayalalithaa and the subsequent elevation of Sasikala, her longtime aide, to the powerful general secretary post.

However, standing in the way of the proposed merger of the two factions is TTV Dinakaran, the nephew of VK Sasikala who organized a massive rally in Melur village near Madurai.

Dinakaran’s rally was attended by 23 MLAs and 4 MPs of the ruling party and has the potential to spoil the merger of the two factions and even bring down the government. The ouster of Dinakaran and the family of Sasikala from the party is another condition put forward by the Panneerselvam faction for the merger to take place.

If the proposed merger happens, Palaniswami could continue as the chief minister with Panneerselvam taking charge as general secretary of the party and even assuming the role of deputy CM.