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Journalism of Courage
Post-May 13, they may turn king-makers. But if you wish to know how the Left policy-makers function, come to Plachimada in Kerala’s Palakkad district, best known for the water-guzzling Coke plant there. Soon after the plant was commissioned in 2001, the groundwater in the vicinity turned thick and it was blamed on the factory’s deep borewells. A thatched shed came up across the road where, for over 700 days, the Adivasis have been on a sit-in, demanding the plant’s closure. They have nearly achieved what they are fighting for, thanks to a court order.
The Adivasis got no political backing. For the Left, it was too soon to eat its permission. The non-Left parties were silent for they, too, had their unions in the factory. A Janata Dal leader went a step further — the socialist sold water to Coke.
Meanwhile, Plachimada became the focus of media and activists’ attention, both from within and outside the country. To make matters worse for the parties, the elections were scheduled before the monsoon.
At 9.30 am, bang opposite the soft drink factory, a truck arrives to fill up a hundred colourful plastic pots with drinking water. It is too stark an irony for the vote-seeker to ignore. CPI(M) candidate Krishnadas told his union comrades that whether they liked it or not, the factory had to go. BJP candidate Uday Bhaskar, a businessman, was at his diplomatic best. Meanwhile, the Congress was mumbling, counting on some cross-votes from the Left unions.
No big deal though. The plant employs no more than 700 workers. Also count in their families and a tea-stall owner who caters to them. Again, some of them are Left-leaning and will ultimately vote for the Left.
Unlike them, Venugopal, a former RSS functionary and the leader of the pack demanding the plant’s closure, has no party loyalties. His softest synonym for the career politician is ‘‘pimp’’. He says he can swing over 5,000 votes which will go to the CPI(M) this time.
But next year is the panchayat polls where every 100 votes will matter. That will be the time to woo back the Coke workers, but how? On your way back to Palakkad town, try one of those roadside astrologers.
