By Arun Lakshman Chennai, Sep 10 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K.Stalin in his speech to inaugurate the ‘Bharat Yodo Yatra’ of the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Kanniyakumari on the 8th of September, said that Rahul Gandhi, the renowned Congress campaigner was on a quest to’retrieve the soul of India’.
Following this immediately following this, immediately following this, the DMK mouthpiece”Murasoli,” a DMK mouthpiece, was released with the claim that Stalin had lobbied for Rahul as a Prime Minister candidate in 2019 in the same way that his father Karunanidhi had expressed his support for Indira Gandhi in the past.
The move of Stalin is regarded by observers of the political world as a clear sign of his political stance to distance from both the BJP and the saffron combination even as there were rumors of Stalin developed a personal relationship with the Prime Secretary Narendra Modi.
The body language of Stalin during the opening ceremony of Chess Olympiad sharing the dais with Prime Minister Modi was one of close camaraderie, at the base, he wants to be an alternative to the saffron combination.
In Tamil Nadu politics, BJP is trying to take over the AIADMK which is battling internal conflicts and rifts between two top officials, Edappadi K.Palaniswami and O.Panneerselvam.
Additionally, Stalin and the DMK and Stalin have a problem with the BJP’s Hindu majoritarian ideology, which is in opposition to the political stance of DMK.
Dr.R.Padmanabhan, Director, Socio Economic Development Foundation which is a think tank located in the city of Madurai when speaking to IANS stated, “Stalin is pitching himself as a major connector who can bring together national parties like the Congress and the Janata Dal (United) with regional forces.He would like to put a stop on the BJP powerhouse and doesn’t want to see the saffron-colored party to be given the chance to be a major player in the state of Tamil Nadu.
Second, he wants to be perceived as a”kingmaker in national politics , not the King himself, a style of politics that was the model of his famous father and the late Chief Minister M.Karunandihi.”
If Nitish Kumar is chosen as the candidate of the opposition for the post of Prime Minister, Stalin will be supporting his candidacy with all of his heart since he is actively pushing for an uprising against the BJP and saffron-saffron combination on a national scale.
Stalin is aware the fact that BJP wants to take over AIADMK in Tamil Nadu and the saffron party wants to create the issue of his Dravidian political views in the state.
Stalin is not looking for the party to expand with another round of the ruling in 2024’s general elections.
C.
Rajeev, Director, Centre for Policy and Development Studies, an think tank that is based in of Chennai in an interview with IANS told IANS, “Stalin knows that Tamil Nadu politics are in the murky waters, and also that AIADMK is being pushed to an impasse and BJP is trying to take over the position and thus would like to stop BJP on a national scale from gaining power.For that reason, he will join forces with any party, not just Nitish and his primary goal is to be an interlocutors between all the other parties and not push his way to the top.”
With Nitish Kumar having held an initial round of meetings in New Delhi with senior political leaders, in the second round, he is likely to meet with Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and others in the Southern States as well as Stalin because of his great personal relationship with his Southern political leaders.He will serve as a key facilitator for these meetings.
aal/uk
