In politically divided Tamil Nadu, a tiny sign of change

When M K Stalin attended the Jayalalithaa government’s swearing-in and the chief minister thanked him for the gesture, a new page was turned in the state’s political lexicon, reports B Srikumar.

It came as a big surprise for most people in Tamil Nadu who are used to political mud-slinging and name-calling between rivals, when Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s issued a statement thanking M K Stalin, her political rival and treasurer of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, for attending the swearing-in ceremony of her council of ministers on May 23.

People elsewhere may wonder what is so unusual about it, little realising that in politically cleaved Tamil Nadu, this was a new, and refreshing, development. The ruling All India Anna DMK and Stalin’s party have been arch-rivals for decades and their deep rivalry can almost be termed a blood feud. Each party, on coming to power, revelled in overturning the other’s administrative decisions. Given this background, mature politics seem to be finally dawning on Tamil Nadu.

So has a new beginning been made in Tamil Nadu politics? Maybe. Maybe it is too early to tell, but the early signs are heart-warming.

Just look at the contrast in the neighbouring state. A day before Jayalalithaa took oath for the sixth time, in Kerala, chief minister-designate Pinarayi Vijayan called on the outgoing CM Ommen Chandy along with his colleagues to seek his blessings. Following this, social media in Tamil Nadu went berserk wondering if it was too much to expect such maturity from their politicians too.

As if granting their wish, came the show of bonhomie from Jayalalithaa. Even that, however, was not without hiccups.

As photographs of Stalin seated along with other MLAs in the middle row of the Madras University Centenary Hall watching the swearing-in on went viral, with many appreciating his gesture, his father and DMK chief M Karunanidhi threw a press statement into the works. The AIADMK had insulted his party by allocating the middle row to his son even while defeated candidate and actor Sarathkumar was seated in the first row, he fumed, adding that Jayalalithaa can never reform her ‘arrogant ways’.

But later, Stalin tweeted: ‘Attended the swearing-in of TN CM today. Hope that she fulfils her election promises and works hard for the people of TN. Wish her best.’ Interestingly, he did not say a word about the insult perceived by his father.

With this gesture, Stalin seems to have scored brownie points over his political rival. DMK functionary Saravanan said, “It shows the quality of our leader, and increases our respect for his approach. At the same time it exposes Jayalalithaa’s unchanged attitude.”

However, Jayalalithaa sought to put a lid on the controversy with her statement that there was no intention to insult him or his party, and that officials were merely following the protocol manual. She also thanked Stalin for attending the swearing-in ceremony, and said she looked forward to work with his party for the betterment of the state. 

AIADMK leader Avadi Kumar said, “Amma has given due respect to everyone who attended the ceremony. If the DMK had informed the officials about his participation in the event they would have given him a prominent row. The people of Tamil Nadu have rejected their party in the poll and so out of frustration Karunanidhi has been lamenting.”

However, while Jayalalithaa said her officials were only following the protocol manual, many questioned how then her aide Sasiskala and family -- who hold no official designation – could occupy the first row, and also how a losing candidate like Sarathkumar could be given prime position.

Old-timers recall that this is not the first time such an incident has happened where the DMK has been put in its place, so to say. On March 23, 2002, when Jayalalitha took oath as chief minister, then DMK general secretary and leader of the opposition Prof K Anbazhagan was seated in the sixth row, along with Stalin. Jayalalithaa had issued a similar statement at that time as well, regretting what had happened and blaming the officials for the seating snafu.

Political analyst Gnani Sankaran said, “This is a welcome move by Jayalalithaa and she should extend such an attitude towards everything. Bureaucrats generally behave in this way to satisfy their master. The officials are to be blamed for such action.”

On Tuesday, Stalin was unanimously elected the DMK’s legislative party leader in the assembly, making him the leader of the opposition. With 89 MLAs occupying the opposition benches for the first time, their strength is a matter of concern for the ruling party.  

Perhaps the bonhomie between the chief minister and her rival is a pointer to how things will unfold in the assembly in the days to come.

Image: DMK treasurer M K Stalin and a host of party colleagues attend J Jayalalithaa’s swearing-in ceremony as chief minister of Tamil Nadu in Chennai on May 23, 2016. Photograph: R Senthil Kumar/PTI Photo.