Stalin,man who always wanted out

Instead,under Stalins influence,the party gradually distanced itself from many of UPA-2s policies.

The DMKs pullout is a reflection of the power equations within the party and its first family,and of M K Stalins growing clout,for insiders say it was he who influenced his father Karunanidhi.

Stalin,de facto political successor to the DMK chief,had been of the view that the DMK had not benefited politically from the alliance with the Congress; rather,it stood to share the flak earned by the UPA government for various policies.

The DMK had been nursing a grudge with the Congress ever since the arrest of A Raja and Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum case. Having been routed in the Tamil Nadu elections,however,the DMK was not in a position to flex its muscle and antagonise the Congress. Instead,under Stalins influence,the party gradually distanced itself from many of UPA-2s policies. It made public its opposition to allowing FDI in multi-brand retail,joined a Bharat bandh called by opposition parties against the fuel price increase and last month joined a two-day strike called by central trade unions against the UPAs labour policies.

Stalin was particularly upset with the way the Congress was treating his party,those close to him say. For instance,the party had not been kept in the loop about the notification of the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal. Party leaders say it could not fully exploit the Centres decision because of this lack of communication. It was Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa who claimed credit for forcing the UPA to notify the award.

When the Sri Lanka issue arose,the opportunity it presented was for Stalin to exploit,for he oversees Karunanidhis pet project Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation. DMK insiders say the party initially wanted to play the Tamil card only to score a point over Jayalalithaa,who has been equally vocal on the issue,but things changed with the arrest of fasting college students and the resulting public mood.

With Karunanidhi having giventhe UPA time until Thursday,an MP explained the political calculation: If the government agrees to our demands,we take credit. If not,we walk out and wrest the issue from the AIADMK,which will benefit us in 2014. Another MP said,Even if we get Parliament to pass a resolution,it is good enough since Jayalalithaa in the assembly has been demanding a central resolution.