DMK-led alliance remains intact while AIADMK has lost another ally
Elections make or break alliances. In recent months, the AIADMK, which was ousted from power in the state in May last year after 10 years of rule, will realize the value of this proverb.
If Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), which contested the assembly elections along with the AIADMK, left the alliance in September, weeks before the rural local bodies elections in nine districts, it was the turn of another ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). ), to leave the alliance for the civic polls to be held on February 19, covering 12,838 wards of 649 local bodies, including 21 municipal corporations.
While there was some bad blood between the two parties after the PMK pulled out of the alliance, in the case of the BJP, there was no apparent rancor, even if the development originated as a sequel to the seat-sharing failure. Talks. In fact, when the leader of the BJP in the assembly Nainar Nagenthiran launched a scathing attack against the AIADMK a few weeks ago, state unit president K. Annamalai immediately demanded to make amends with the senior aide. His explanation was also approved by the AIADMK, as party spokesperson and former fisheries minister D. Jayakumar insisted that the urban local bodies’ failure to reach a mutually acceptable agreement on seat-sharing had nothing to do with Mr. Overview of Nagenthiran.
The main difference between the two parties, which sometimes referred to themselves as “natural allies”, was the number of seats earmarked for the national party. While the AIADMK did not want to go beyond 10% seats, the BJP, which was provided 9% wards in the last local body elections, had demanded 20% as usual. The AIADMK would have been prepared to give a higher share of seats in Kanyakumari district as the DMK did to the Congress, but it was unwilling to accommodate the BJP’s demands in the Coimbatore and Tiruppur districts of the western region, which are its traditional states. is one of the regions. The citadel, however, remains unanswered as to why the Dravidian chief chose to take such a tough stand despite not having any ally of sufficient strength. One possible explanation is that it is desperate to remove the BJP’s tag of being a ‘B team’ that its opponents have attached to it.
The BJP, which is struggling to expand its footprint in the state, sees the current round of local body elections as an opportunity to make its presence felt. Perhaps this is the reason why a large number of its office-bearers, from secretaries of district units to core committee members, chose to go solo even before the seat-sharing talks with the AIADMK broke down. An important reason for this is also that the party wants to test its true strength in urban areas, where elections are going to be held.
It is not difficult for anyone to predict the final political outcome of development. The DMK-led alliance remains intact and its electoral prospects look bright, if only to go by arithmetical strength. But the elections are not decided on the basis of arithmetic only. Equally important are political chemistry, inter-party coordination within a formation, and cohesion within the ranks of the dominant party of any coalition. There are reports of discord between the constituents of the ruling party-led front over seat-sharing. Also, the DMK recently faced controversy over the distribution of free Pongal gift hampers through the Public Distribution System. But with the division of the opposition camp, it is now getting the advantage of the DMK and its allies.
ramakrishnan.t@thehindu.co.in
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