The Hindu : Voters have never had it so good

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 16, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Voters have never had it so good

By Our Special Correspondent

Sattankulam Feb. 15. It is election time in Sattankulam and dhoti-clad Santa Claus' have laid siege to the Christian-dominant constituency.

Polls normally showcase political munificence. But Sattankulam voters have never had it so good. "Ask, you will be given; Knock, it will be opened" said the Bible. And that appears the mantra of the jumbo AIADMK campaign team, which has descended on the Sattankulam hinterland with pre-poll goodies.

For an average voter here, a Qualis car was a luxury he could see only on television till a month ago. But now at least 50 premium cars sweep through the dusty hamlets every day, soliciting the "priceless" voter. As a banana farmer, Murugesan, in the Sattankulam union proudly claims: "The entire Tamil Nadu has now moved to this 500-sq.km stretch of land." The Assembly byelection has helped his son get a cricket bat and his wife a synthetic saree, worth over Rs. 250.

And, surely he is not the lone beneficiary. Indeed, the "benefits" have flowed to every corner of the constituency, except Nazareth town. When this correspondent visited the Alwarthirunagari town panchayat and enquired about the "gift package", women excitedly displayed their share of benefits. "We could pick up the saree of our choice," gleamed a Thevar woman from Malavarayanatham. But the sarees, wrapped in long plastic covers, are mostly for self-help group women, possibly because of their potential to influence voters of their village.

In fact, Malavarayanatham is a clear example of the byelection addressing some long-pending demands. As Yadavars in the constituency wanted the Vishnu temple in the hamlet renovated, the repair works are on in full swing. For the women, the SHG office building has been constructed.

In some villages, all SHG women have been given sarees of the same colour. For instance, in the Adhinathapuram Dalit colony, all of them have been given a white and blue synthetic saree.

But, gifts may not guarantee votes. As an SHG leader in the Alwarthirunagari town panchayat points out: "We may get the saree, but we have not decided whom to vote''.

Interestingly, the ruling party has formed an effective "checking system" to ensure that the gifts reach the voters.

First, the local functionaries are asked to collect the "list of demands" from the villagers. Then, a team of Ministers and MLAs visits the village and addresses its needs.

And, there is a "strategic" deployment of the army of Ministers, MPs and MLAs too. In Hindu Nadar-dominated areas in the Sattankulam and Alwarthirunagiri unions, a Minister belonging to the community, Anitha Radhakrishnan; the former Minister, S.P. Shanmuganathan, and the MLAs from Tirunelveli district, M. Sakthivel Murugan and K.Annamalai, have been put in-charge. As for the Christian-Nadar areas around Nazareth town, the Tourism Minister, A.Miller, heads a seven-member legislator team. The Adi Dravidar Welfare Minister, S. Karuppusamy, is wooing the Dalit (Pallar) voters in the Alwarthirunagari union, while the Thevar-team headed by the Minister, Nainar Nagendran, Naththam R. Viswanathan and the MP, Dindigul Sreenivasan, is doing the rounds in the Maravar-dominant areas.

Despite the shower of generosity, some of the villagers heckle the AIADMK men for better roads, bus services and reduction in the price of ration rice. And, some women come up with curious demands too. "Only if Amma (Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa) comes to our village and sees the conditions here, will we vote the AIADMK," several women in villages of the Karungulam union tell the party candidate, L. Neelamegavarnam.

EC `inaction' worries Cong.

The Congress, which is just slowly revving up its election machinery, is obviously worried. "We have informed the Election Commission of the amount of money that is changing hands in Sattankulam. Though giving gifts is an offence, there is no action yet by the EC," rues the State president, S. Balakrishnan. But the gift spree continues.

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