Warring factions of AIADMK merge: Here's all that has happened so far

The two warring factions of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) jointly announced their merger in Chennai on Monday.

The party also announced that Panneerselvam will be its convener and will head the 11 member committee that will run the party while Palaniswami will be the co-convener.

Panneerselvam was sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and was given important portfolios including finance, urban development and housing among others.

Here's a quick look at all that has happened so far:

December 5, 2016: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa died of cardiac arrest following more than two months of illness.

Within hours of her death O Panneerselvam was sworn in as new Chief Minister.

December 29, 2016: VK Sasikala, a confidante of Jayalalithaa, was appointed as AIADMK's general secretary.

February 6, 2017: Panneerselvam resigned as Chief Minister, exactly two months after assuming office.

While resigning, Panneerselvam said that his 'conscience' did not allow him to continue. He questioned Sasikala's elevation. He also asked for a probe into the circumstances under which Jayalalithaa died.

Days later, Sasikala claimed stake to become the state's Chief Minister. However, Sasikala was convicted and jailed by the Karnataka High Court in the disproportionate assets case.

Following her arrest, the Sasikala faction of the AIADMK nominated Edappadi Palaniswami to become the chief minister. Sasikala's nephew TTV Dinakaran was appointed the party's deputy general secretary.

February 16, 2017: The Panneerselvam faction failed to restrict Palaniswami from proving his majority during a floor test in the state assembly.

Talks between the two factions of the party started after the Election Commission declared the date for RK Nagar by-polls, a seat left vacant since Jayalalithaa's death.

The talks failed and both factions decided to contest the by-poll separately. None of the factions was allowed to use the AIADMK's official 'two leaves' election symbol.

The by-polls were suspended after the cash-for-votes scandal. Income tax officials alleged that the Sasikala faction of the party had paid Rs 89 crore to voters to support for its candidate TTV Dinakaran, who is also her nephew.

April 18, 2017: The Panneerselvam faction said negotiations were underway and that the Palaniswami group had created a committee to conduct talks on the merger. But, TTV Dinakaran's position as the deputy general secretary continued to be a sticking point during negotiations.

July 2017: Both factions of the AIADMK voted in favour of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind.

August 4, 2017: BJP president Amit Shah urged the warring factions to reconcile.

August 10, 2017: Following a high-level meeting chaired by Palaniswami, the AIADMK said that TTV Dinakaran's appointment as the deputy general secretary is "illegal".

August 17, 2017: CM Palaniswami met two of the key demands of the Panneerselvam-faction, by ordering a probe into the death of Jayalalithaa and announced that the late chief minister's Poes Garden residence will be converted into a memorial.

August 21, 2017: The two warring factions jointly announced their merger in Chennai, on Friday. Panneerselvam was sworn in as the deputy chief minister and was made the party convener and the head of an 11-member committee that would monitor the day-to-day functioning of the party. Palaniswami was made the co-convener.

According to media reports, Sasikala would be expelled from the party after the party's general body meeting. However, it was not officially confirmed.