THE ECONOMIC TIMES
cover story magazine
DECEMBER 11-17, 2016
Why life in Tamil Nadu politics, and in the AIADMK, will never be the same again
Maalan Narayanan
arve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you,” wrote Shannon L
Alder, an author known for her inspirational books. Jayalalithaa who was given a ceremonious farewell earlier this week has left enough stories to share and debate.
She has left a legacy of a party without leaders, a government without instructions and 113 crore in the estate without a will. A record of consecutive electoral victories, a mass following in millions, an acknowledged reputation at the national level have also triggered pertinent questions: Who will inherit the mantle? Who will call the shots, close aide Sasikala or CM O Panneerselvam? Will the AIADMK stay united or implode? Will the BJP poach from the party? In the bipolar polity of Tamil Nadu, is the AIADMK’s loss DMK’s gain?
The transition of power was smooth yet raised questions as it happened in the dead of the night. Panneerselvam, to whom the portfolios of Jayalalithaa were entrusted when she was in the hospital, was sworn in at 1.30 am on December 6, within two hours of her death. The timing raised eyebrows but not the choice. Pan- nerselvam was chosen by Jayalalithaa twice (in 2001 and 2014) when she was imprisoned in a corruption case. He was a greenhorn in 2001, elected for the first time to the assembly. There was nothing much to complain about the mild-man- nered but hard working OPS, as Panneer- selvam is known in party circles.
But who will inherit the real seat of power – the post of general secretary – held by Jayalalithaa? In the Tamil Nadu assembly in January 2016, she claimed the AIADMK will remain for another 100 years even after her demise, but she had never hinted at who would carry the mantle. By then, Sasikala was calling the shots in the party in the name of Amma.
Jayalalithaa might have approved of Sasikala’s actions in party affairs with a smile. But she was always averse to her kin. In early 2012, Sasikala was shown the door by Jayalalithaa for keeping in touch with her family members as she believed that they were working against her.
But Sasikala returned after 100 days with a confession. “Only after coming out of Poes Garden (Jaya’s residence in Chennai), did I become aware of the machinations of my relatives who have misused my proximity and brought dis- repute to akka and the party. I have no role whatsoever in that. Hereafter, any relative, whosoever it might be who had conspired against akka, will remain a persona non-grata for me as well.”
If Sasikala assumes the seat of power officially it may trigger other problems,
and caste imbalance is one among them. OPS and Sasikala belong to the same community, Thevars. The AIADMK was able to return to power in the closely contested elections in 2016 because of its resounding victory in the western region dominated by Kongu Vellalars. This will force some recalibrations in the caste equations.
The unprecedented courtesy showed by BJP leaders has cast suspicions in the political circles. Jayalalitha’s bonhomie with Prime Minister Narendra Modi is well known, but the presence of M Venkaiah Naidu, who sat all through the day at the funeral, and his claim that the AIADMK was ideologically near to the BJP have some wondering whether the BJP will poach from the AIADMK. Chances of rule by proxy, using Panneerselvam or Sasikala as the facade, are also being speculated.
If the BJP tries to exert a pull, there is the likelihood of few AIADMK members aligning with the DMK in the pretext of Dravidian spirit or in the name of secularism. The DMK is short of 18 MPs in the House. The problem, however, may be that as of now it has to put its own house in order.
The AIADMK legislators know very well that it would be an uphill task to get re-elected without Amma. The DMK is awaiting the verdict of the 2G and other cases. The BJP has no leader to project in the assembly poll. The Congress has a marginal presence and its destiny is twined with the DMK. Then again, four and a half years, till the next elections, provide ample time for manipulations, machinations and far-reaching modifications.
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