Southern States - Tamil Nadu   

Will DMK remain neutral at Sattankulam?

By R.K. Radhakrishnan

CHENNAI Jan. 14. The Sattankulam byelection is turning out to be more than just another bypoll for the DMK, as it is faced with a few difficult choices. Though the parliamentary elections are still more than a year away, the choices made now by the DMK will have a significant impact on the alliances for the Lok Sabha elections. Hence, the party has deferred its decision till the last moment. This enables the party to take a decision after other parties lay their cards on the table.

After the AICC secretary, G.K.Vasan, called on the DMK president, M.Karunanidhi recently - described as a courtesy call - and some other TNCC functionaries paid a visit to his Gopalapuram residence to greet him on the launch of his commentary on `Tholkappiyam', it was the turn of Mr.Karunanidhi's son, who holds sway in Madurai, M.K.Azhagiri to meet the DMK chief at the party headquarters late on Monday.

The meeting, considered to be "political", assumes significance as it comes in the wake of the DMK not announcing a decision on contesting the bypoll on January 12, the date Mr. Karunanidhi set for making the party's intentions clear. That day, the DMK chief heard from many district office-bearers in the south the need to contest the Sattankulam seat. But party functionaries were in no position to say what the outcome of the `father-son' meeting was. "May be Mr. Azhagiri was also consulted, or just asked to fall in line with the party's decision," a senior functionary said.

In the last State Assembly elections, the BJP, which was part of the DMK-led alliance here, contested the seat unsuccessfully. The DMK's difficulty stems from the fact that it is part of the ruling NDA at the Centre and still enjoys a great deal of confidence with the top BJP leaders. Contesting the Sattankulam seat would mean that it would end up fighting the BJP, which seems keen on contesting this time too, if only to test to how far the DMK would go to annoy the Central leadership.

Earlier, after the DMK announced that the State-level NDA did not exist, the BJP did not contest the Vaniyambadi and Saidapet bypolls, but did not support the DMK either.

In Saidapet, the BJP supported the MDMK and in Vaniyambadi it took an ambivalent stand.

Hurt over this, the DMK has repeatedly stated that the BJP's "neutral'' stance in Vaniyambadi was only meant to encourage its cadre to vote for the AIADMK's Hindu candidate over the DMK's Muslim candidate.

Mr.Karunanidhi spoke about this on January 12 too, after a meeting of the headquarters committee here. Now, the DMK sees the Sattankulam bypoll as an occasion to pay the BJP back.

The DMK's option of not contesting the seat is also stated to be under active consideration.

By staying "neutral'' at Sattankulam, the DMK would help the Congress.

With the Congress seeking the support of all secular parties, this would be an occasion for the DMK to reach out to new friends within the State without parting ways with the BJP at the Centre.

This would mean some trouble in the secular alliance as a neutral stance could pave the way for the DMK's entry into the secular alliance, despite CPI(M) reservations.

Also, the DMK does not have much at stake in Sattankulam and contesting the seat would mean too much effort and energies focussed on a constituency.

But being the main opposition in the State, a section of the party wants to contest the seat, if only to prove that even in a place which is not its bastion, the DMK enjoys significant support.

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