The DMK had no choice but to quit,say leaders of two parties,but each cites a different reason. From the DMK itself,MP Kanimozhi says they had to pull out of the UPA because the government had failed to ensure changes in a resolution against Sri Lanka moved by the US in the ongoing UN session in Geneva. And from the Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam,a nationalist party,leader P Nedumaran says not puling out would have meant risking isolation from the public at a time when the Lankan Tamil issue has reached such an emotional peak in the state. Over the past few weeks,war crimes and human rights violations had resurfaced as a political issue,and coincided with the 22nd session of the UN Human Rights Commission. Major parties had initially demanded that India back the US-moved draft resolution on promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka,then made apparently perfunctory calls for stringent amendments to the resolution. What changed the complexion of the issue,however,was an indefinite fast by a group of eight students from Loyola College,who demanded Indias intervention to give teeth to the resolution. Though the police arrested and removed them after a couple of days,the fast had garnered enough attention to inspire similar protests across various campuses in Tamil Nadu. Even while accepting support from all outfits other than the Congress,they stress the students remained independent of political leanings. This gave it more credibility than most outfits known for anti-Lanka activism. Soon,students from engineering and medical colleges and even IIT Madras joined the demand for justice for Lankan Tamils. On Tuesday,the Tamil film industry joined the protests. In the beginning,there was criticism of the DMKs passiveness during the last phase of the war when a successful intervention could have saved hundreds of lives. Even the dusk-to-dawn general strike announced by the partys Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation a week ago was a moderate success. Sensing the public mood,the party changed gears over the last week,setting stringent conditions that would never be easy for the Centre to fulfil. And as the UPA stayed silent,the DMK turned strident,finally taking itself to a dead end seemingly on purpose. Party insiders say the heir-imminent,M K Stalin,is not keen to continue in alliance at the Centre. His elder brother,M K Alagiri,the partys only cabinet minister,has less clout in the DMK and little interest in continuing in power. A section within the DMK is of the opinion that the Congress had become a liability to the DMK due to this issue. It was a reversal of equations since the run-up to the 2011 assembly polls,when it was the DMK that was a liability to the Congress. Leaders have not forgotten how the Congress bargained for and won its pound of flesh during seat-sharing talks,and lost miserably. Tuesdays decision was followed by celebrations with crackers and sweets,and slogans against the Congress and its top leadership. Kanimozhi told the media the DMK had no choice but to pull out as its demand to incorporate the amendments were not considered by the Centre. The decision might have a personal bearing on her; there are speculations that her alleged role in the 2G spectrum scam could come up in court again. The DMK had no choice but to pull out, agreed Nedumaran,the nationalist leader. But it is because it risked isolating the public if it continued in the alliance. The decision came too late,but Tamils would still welcome it for the sake of presenting a united front in demanding justice for those suffering in Sri Lanka. A Congress leader-turned-Tamil activist,Nedumaran said the issue has struck such a chord that it will impact the Congresss prospects in the state. They are friendless here. And without the backing of either the AIADMK or the DMK,they will not win even one seat, he said. Not everyone is convinced by the DMKs belligerence. Even Karunanidhi,when asked if the party would reconsider the decision to quit the alliance,said the Centre had time till Thursday to bring in a resolution in Parliament. People of Tamil Nadu hope the DMK will stand by its decision, said Nedumaran. Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa recalled Karunanidhis passiveness in 2009 and ridiculed the indefinite fast he had undertaken seeking a stop to the war. The fast was called off within a few hours without Karunanidhi getting any concrete assurances,she said. She alleged Karunanidhi had kept quiet when the Centre diluted a draft resolution against Sri Lanka last year,and did nothing on an assembly resolution seeking economic sanctions on Sri Lanka. The present move was aimed at minimising the damage,she added. According to political commentator Gnani,quitting just a year ahead of a general election will not help the DMK regain any of the credibility it has lost. Had they taken a similar stand then,thousands of innocents in Sri Lanka could have been saved. How will pulling out help the dead? What purpose does it serve the Tamils locked inside camps there? he said. If the DMK had wanted,he added,party members could have introduced in Parliament the resolution it is now demanding of the Centre. State Congress leaders,whose relations with the DMK have worsened,said the pullout was expected,as the DMK had been preparing the grounds for the past two months. On top of that,the Centre failed to publicise Indias efforts in post-war Lanka,putting us on the defensive when facing allegations of being indifferent to the plight of Tamils, conceded a Congress member. The party seems reconciled to the fact that neither of the Dravidian majors might want to align with it in the elections,which could effectively mean it cannot seriously count itself in the hunt for the states 39 seats. Rarely at peace DMK and Congress in UPA-2 May 2009: Ties came under strain even before UPA-2 began term. Differences over cabinet berths led to DMK announcing it would stay out and offer support from outside. After hard bargaining,DMK agreed to accept 3 cabinet and 4 MoS berths. March 2011: A month ahead of Tamil Nadu elections,the DMK announced it was pulling its ministers out of the UPA. It put the decision on hold after Pranab Mukherjee rang up Karunanidhi. The differences were later sorted out. May 2011: Karunanidhis daughter Kanimozhi arrested in 2G spectrum case. Not in a position to snap ties with the Congress on an issue that involved his family,that too months after being ousted from power in Tamil Nadu,the DMK chief expressed his hurt and bided his time. December 2011: DMK and Trinamool Congress opposed FDI in retail,forcing government to put decision on hold. A year later,DMK voted in favour of government resolution. Karunanidhi said the DMK took the decision with bitterness. May 2012: Karunanidhi issued a vieled threat of pulling out of UPA over petrol price hike. DMK also joined a Bharat bandh called by opposition parties over the hike.