Vaiko dumps Karunanidhi: joins Amma

That Vaiko will dump Karunanidhi was in the air for quite sometime.  Karunanidhi was bent upon promoting his son MK Stalin as the next chief minister of Tamil Nadu in the event of the DMK victory. It is a well known fact that Vaiko is one of the very few leaders other than Jayalalitha, who commands some respect in Tamil Nadu. For Karunanidhi, it is his family which counts in politics and this has not gone  well with the voters of Tamil Nadu. Moreover, Stalin is yet to get acceptance among the Tamil people because of his antecedents and past behaviour. “No woman with a little bit of self respect would vote for Stalin,” said a senior politician from Tamil Nadu.

Karunanidhi offered 22 seats to Vaiko who had asked for a minimum of 25 seats. It is reported that Jayalalithaa has offered Vaiko 35 seats. Karunanidhi does not spare even a single opportunity to belittle and  humiliate Vaiko whom he sees as the main stumbling block of Stalin’s chief ministerial dreams. The Karunanidhi family’s Sun TV network makes it a point to black out Vaiko from all its news and other programmes.

It is interesting to note that both Jaya and Vaiko were sworn enemies till the other day. It was Jayalalithaa who got Vaiko arrested on POTA charges and sent him to jail where he had to cool his heel for more than eighteen months. Vaiko is a known supporter of the LTTE and a close aid of Veluppillai Prabhakaran. With Vaiko casting his lots with Jayalalithaa, the DMK camp has suffered a major setback in the last two years. Karunanidhi’s  last wish is to be interred at Marina Beach where Annadurai and MGR, the former chief ministers and the founders of the DMK lie in state. He could be buried at Marina Beach only if DMK returns to power this time since he is very much into the autumn of his life. Jayalalithaa, who does not want to pollute the serene environment of the Marina is certain to deny Karunanidhi the luxury of a state burial at the world’s most beautiful beach. Hence Karunanidhi finds himself  in a must win situation. With Vaiko dumping him, Karunanidhi will be forced to keep the other partners in good humor since it is an open secret that the Congress too does not like him.