Jaya’s handshake with PMK makes Cong bristle

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 6: The decision of AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha to go for an alliance with the PMK for the assembly polls in Tamil Nad...

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 6: The decision of AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha to go for an alliance with the PMK for the assembly polls in Tamil Nadu has put the Congress in a fix.

Jayalalitha’s decision, announced after her meeting with PMK chief S Ramadoss in Chennai today, has made her ally, the Congress, bristle. It is not willing, for the time being at least, to be seen as having any truck with the PMK in the state. This is not only because the PMK till recently was a committed member of the NDA and is still ready to bail it out in case of a crisis but also because the predominantly Vanniyar outfit has pro-LTTE inclinations.

What has particularly upset the Congress is that Jayalalitha didn’t even bother to consult it before taking the step. Senior party leader Pranab Mukherjee had last month gone to Chennai to hold elaborate seat-sharing talks with her.

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Party sources here, while pointing out that the political situation in Tamil Nadu had become “very fluid” after PMK’s exit from the NDA and alliance with AIADMK, said senior Congress leaders from the state, including PCC chief E V K S Elangovan, had been summoned to Delhi for “detailed discussions” with party chief Sonia Gandhi and other central leaders.

An invitation for a strategy meeting with Sonia is also likely to be extended to Tamil Manila Congress (TMC) chief G K Moopanar, whose stand on the AIADMK-PMK alliance will, to a large extent, determine the Congress stand. Congress sources here say the TMC leader is “sceptical” about AIADMK’s alliance with PMK, which will obviously curtail the TMC’s bargaining power on seat-sharing.

While the Congress on its own doesn’t count for much in the state’s highly polarised politics, it is still a crucial player, especially if it works in tandem with the TMC. The Congress and the TMC together share a vote percentage of around 17 per cent, which will be crucial when it comes to tilting the balance one way or the other in the state.

Congress sources, while admitting that the party had been pushed into a corner by the AIADMK-PMK alliance, are however banking on presenting a “united stand” along with the TMC on the issue. “A strategy worked out jointly with the TMC is essential to counter this fresh salvo from Jayalalitha since together the Congress and the TMC count for a lot for the AIADMK to take them seriously.”

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While it is too early to say whether the Congress would walk out of its alliance with AIADMK and look for other options, such as a Third Front, the fact is that allying with Jayalalitha along with the PMK will be very difficult for the party now.

The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE is still a very emotive issue among Congressmen in the state and the PMK’s open sympathy for that outfit will make it extremely awkward even for a willing high command to convince the state unit. The party had, it may be recalled, brought down the United Front Government over the DMK’s links with the LTTE.