Chennai, Sep 3 (IANS): The DMK and Congress are trying to woo the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), the political outfit of the powerful Vanniyar community, in the run up to the local body elections, the dates of which may be announced anytime soon.
In the state Assembly on Thursday, the leader of opposition and senior leader of Congress party, K. Selvaperuthungai called upon the PMK to join the DMK-led front as it was the DMK that had supported all the demands of the PMK.
Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced that the government would build a memorial in honour of the 21 people who lost their lives during the Vanniyar quota protests in 1987. It was the AIADMK government that was in power in 1987 and the PMK is now in alliance with the AIADMK since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
With local body elections to the new districts of Tamil Nadu to be announced any time soon, the Congress and DMK are trying to woo the PMK to its fold. The Vanniiyar community is powerful in Northern Tamil Nadu and the DMK alliance wants to make sure that they win the local body polls easily and hence wooing of the PMK.
The DMK government has in a Government Order implemented the special reservation of 10.5 per cent within the Most Backward Caste (MBC) quota. The reservation was announced by the AIADMK government of K. Palaniswami, and the DMK government soon after it assumed office implemented the reservation through a Government Order (GO). This has led to the PMK becoming soft on the DMK and the front wants to cement this into a solid political alliance with the PMK.
The PMK was expecting a Union Minister berth for the party's youth wing leader Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, who is the son of the founder leader Dr. S. Ramadoss. Anbumani was a former Union Health minister in the Atal Behari Vajpayee government. With both AIADMK and PMK trying for ministerial berths, Narendra Modi did not consider both the parties during the recent cabinet expansion and the PMK, according to party insiders, was not happy with the NDA alliance ever since.
A senior leader of the PMK told IANS, "The PMK is a political party which is serving the interests of the people of Tamil Nadu and the Vanniyar community had requested a ministerial berth in the Union cabinet for the party. However, it did not materialise. This does not mean that we are shifting stands from the AIADMK-led NDA alliance in TN immediately. The DMK government has been providing all the demands of the PMK and knows the full potential of the party and the Vanniyar community."
While the PMK has become almost silent on many issues against the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, political observers are of the opinion that the PMK may not switch sides immediately.
R. Padmanabhan, Director, Socio Economic Development Foundation, a think tank based out of Madurai told IANS, "While the PMK may not immediately switch positions, there is no bonding of the party with the AIADMK and BJP. They can shift to the DMK camp any time and the Chief Minister is working out on a way to support the PMK and to meet its demands as it is a powerful force in Northern Tamil Nadu and no political party can afford to lose its support."