“Do not overlook the fact that Dinakaran kept his distance during the confidence vote in the assembly and when Palanisami took office as CM. It is not in his nature to be overbearing or pushy,” points out V.P. Kalairajan, a senior district secretary of the party. “Also, he never misleads anyone with false promises. He is unlike the normal politician. Actually, he is a very decent person.” When Kalairajan had threatened, for the sake of drama, to chop off the arm of OPS if he even touched the party headquarters, the first person to chide him was Dinakaran. “That is no way to speak of a chief minister, even if he is just a caretaker CM,” Dinakaran had told him bluntly.