The Rage of Rasam

With 40 MPs and 12 ministers, Tamil representation in the central government is the highest ever. Where once a sneeze in Lucknow could upset the power balance in the capital, now a slight influenza in Chennai might cause temperatures to rise in Lutyensland.

As Dayanidhi Maran, cabinet minister for IT, stands alongside Sonia Gandhi for the declaration of the Common Minimum Programme that promises Tamil will be recognised as a classical language, the message is clear: the Tamil Nadu alliance is the jugular vein of this government.

Yet so little is known about these immensely powerful Tamil men and women of New Delhi, beyond the Ray Ban glasses of M. Karunanidhi, Dravida czar and supremo of the DMK, which is at the heart of the alliance. No television studio has their resident Tamil talking head. A Tamil politician is a rarity at a Page Three soiree.

But stroll around Tamil Nadu Bhavan at lunch time and you’ll find ministers and MPs who are scriptwriters, techies, lawyers, mathematicians and even owners of discos. ‘‘We will have no problems in Delhi,’’ grins Dayanidhi Maran of the DMK, minister for communication and IT, ‘‘even if we don’t speak Hindi, we all speak English.’’

At 39, Maran, son of the late Murasoli Maran, is described as the ‘‘rising star of Tamil politics’’, a relatively de-ideologised trendy techie who did an ambiguous course at Harvard, wears Bermudas at home and drives swanky cars.

The DMK were once the stormtroopers for ‘‘Dravid Nadu’’, ideologically potent streetfighters who rioted bitterly against the imposition of Hindi, even called for secession from India, and subsumed individual and religious identities in a fiercely atheist, anti-Brahmin, anti-‘‘Aryan’’ north India movement.

The DMK was an ersatz Left, with committed cadre, sacrifice of comforts and leadership cults. But over the years, the DMK has become a sort of regional Congress, imprisoned in dynasties and families, of whom Dayanidhi, student of Don Bosco and Loyola College, is the latest star scion.

“I’m a modern guy of the new generation,’’ he says. ‘‘I have no problems with Hindi or north India. I love being here. I haven’t been to any of the discos though.’’

The DMK may roughly be divided into three groups. The vanishing old guard represented by Karunanidhi. The aggressive grassroots organisation men represented by his son M.K. Stalin, tipped to become chief minister. And the elite English speakers represented by Maran.

In fact, the Marans are one of the ruling clans of the DMK. The late Murasoli Maran — he got his name because he used to edit the DMK party paper Murasoli (Drumbeat) — was Karunanidhi’s nephew.

Dayanidhi’s elder brother Kalanidhi is the family whiz kid and runs Sun TV. Dayanidhi owns a cable company, Sumangali Cable Vision, and once owned a Chennai disco known as HFO or Hell Freezes Over — and there are exciting tales of how he allegedly threatened to burn down the factory of a friend of his wife Priya.

‘‘Dayanidhi’s a bit of a delinquent,’’ says a political observer. ‘‘Most people in the party hate him because he just waltzed into the party on his father’s name.’’

Yet the Tamil dynasts are all highly educated. The stylish and articulate Anbumani Ramadoss, minister for health and family welfare, is 39, son of S. Ramadoss, leader of the PMK (Pattali Makkal Katchi. Hey NDTV anchor: say this fast five times) is not only a medical doctor but also holds a degree in macroeconomics from the London School of Economics.

Not even an MP, Anbumani runs an internationally-funded NGO called Pasumai Thyagam or Green Motherland. When not criss-crossing the world for environment conferences, he is closely involved in his father’s party.

The Vaniyar caste to which Ramadoss belongs chopped down trees for their livelihood, but Ambumani says he’s a green at heart. ‘‘My focus will be rural health and I am confident I can get things done. I speak English, have worked in Delhi before. Anyone’s welcome to give me a buzz and come and have a chat. Anytime.’’

Minister of State for Home S. Raghupathy (DMK) is a lawyer. He proudly declares his son is a doctor, daughter is an M.Com, LLb and M.Phil and his son-in-law has a Ph.D in commerce.

A. Raja of the DMK, cabinet minister for environment and forests, holds a BSc in mathematics, and has graduate and post-graduate degrees in law. His wife is also an advocate. ‘‘My family were agriculturalist,’’ he says, ‘‘I joined the DMK when I was a student because I was idealistic and passionate.’’

Yet the passion has petered out into dynasties and opportunism. Periyar’s atheist Dravida revolution has been overcome by political families, temples and alliances with the hated ‘‘Aryans’’ of the north.

How sweetly ironic that Karunanidhi named his son Stalin, but created a political monarchy. Vaiko, once the blue-eyed boy of Karunandhi, left the DMK precisely because of the dynasty factor and formed his own party, the MDMK (Marumalarchi Darvida Munnetra Kazhagam).

Even so, in spite of the families, it is also true that Periyar’s rationalist legacy lives on in other ways. DMK cadre still practice ‘‘Self Respect’’ marriages, where Brahmin priests are strictly kept out and instead Karunanidhi — or ‘‘kalaigyar’’ (litterateur), as he is called — presides.

Mix caste with cultural pride in a civilisation more than 2,000 years old and you have, as former IIT (Chennai) director P.V. Indiresan says, ‘‘a tremendous self-belief, a belief that the Dravidian Tamil is the original inhabitant of India’’.

But is the Tamil a Tamil first and an Indian second? K. Venkatapathy, minister of state for law and justice and also an advocate, says Tamils are an emotional people. ‘‘We have given up the idea of Dravid Nadu. But Tamil must be a classical language. We insist that more power be given to the states. Earlier we were deprived in Parliament, deprived of government posts. Now we feel we are in a position to claim our rights.’’

For years the DMK was the troublesome pariah, the Congress kept up a bitter campaign against it, accusing the party of LTTE links. Another irony that Subbulakshmi Jagadeesan of the DMK — arrested in 1992 for ‘‘harbouring LTTE militants’’ — is now minister of state for social justice and empowerment.

Has Sonia Gandhi forgiven her?

‘‘There is no question of Sonia Gandhi forgiving me,’’ declares the soft-spoken Jagadeesan. ‘‘She fully trusts me. We haven’t done anything … She is all right with me because the case against me was nothing but opposition propaga- nda. I have often come to Delhi and have never faced problems.’’

A new mandate, and forgiveness all around. The DMK, MDMK and PMK have been members of both BJP-led and Congress-led governments, showing just how badly the Centre needs them. Fluttering white lungis are chasing away Lakhnavi kurta pyjamas. As the vote in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar splinters, the alliances forged among the Dravida groups provide a crucial block of votes to any national party.

As the centre of political gravity shifts south, the way is cleared for many more Marans and Ramadosses to ride to Rajpath. Mattar paneer has been the staple of state banquets for far too long. This may be the dawning of the age of thayir sadam, curd rice.