UNTIL two months ago, his political friends didn’t need him and television cameras had stopped tracking him. Reviving old emotional ties with school pals and participating in volleyball matches in rural backyards, he had taken to a quiet life in his village—Kalingapatti in southern Tirunelveli district. But the spotlight is back on 61-year-old Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) chief Vaiko (Y. Gopalasamy).
Today, the ‘puratchi puyal’ (revolutionary storm as partymen call him) is the most sought after politician and his party could well decide the fate of the two major Dravidian parties—the ruling AIADMK and the main opposition DMK—in the coming Assembly election.
With the political stakes high, the MDMK chief is playing his cards close to his chest. While the political buzz is that the firebrand politician is likely to swing Amma’s way, Vaiko insists he is still a part of the DMK-led Democratic Progressive Alliance in Tamil Nadu, which includes also the MDMK, the Congress, PMK, the two Left parties and the Indian Union Muslim League.
But even while mouthing diplomatic niceties about MDMK’s standing in the DPA, Vaiko has reportedly informed the Congress leadership that he might be doing a Paswan in Tamil Nadu—back the UPA at the Centre and go with Amma for the state election.
Strangely, the most wanted politician in Tamil Nadu has a rather bleak track record in the Assembly. Since its launch in 1993 December, the MDMK has not won a single Assembly seat. In the last Assembly election in May 2001, Vaiko quit the DMK-led National Democratic Alliance, upset with the ‘‘measly offer’’ of seats and went solo. His party drew a blank despite fielding candidates in 211 of the 234 Assembly constituencies. But though fighting on its own, the party polled 4.47 per cent of the votes.
The MDMK rank and file is in no mood for any misadventures this time. In fact, Vaiko is under tremendous pressure from his cadres to quit the DPA and join forces with the chief minister and AIADMK supremo, J Jayalalithaa, even though she was responsible for his 19-month incarceration under POTA.
Known for his blatant pro-LTTE stand, Vaiko, who was a trusted lieutenant of Karunanidhi, quit the DMK in 1993 after he was accused of conspiring with the LTTE to kill his mentor.
It was the AIADMK that tied up with the MDMK first for the 1998 Lok Sabha election, endorsing the latter’s political credibility. In the subsequent 1999 Lok Sabha election, after the AIADMK pulled down the Vajpayee government, the MDMK remained in the NDA.
After the last Assembly election when the MDMK snapped ties with the DMK, the two got together again after Karunanidhi visited Vaiko in prison.
Vaiko wore his LTTE leanings on his sleeve. He shot into limelight in 1989 after his mysterious boat trip to Jaffna to spend a month in the jungles with LTTE leader Vellupillai Pirapaharan. The MDMK leader named his grandson Pirapaharan and his home in Kalingapatti boasts a framed photograph of the LTTE supremo.
Vaiyapuri Gopalsamy, who changed his name to Vaiko some years ago, was drawn into Dravidian politics in his student days during the anti-Hindi agitation. His organisation skills were apparent during his early days in politics when he headed the DMK’s Palayamkottai (in Tiruneveli district) cadre wing. The fieriest speaker in the DMK, Vaiko made his first speech on a public platform when he was barely eight.
He became a Rajya Sabha member first in 1978, rising rapidly within the party gaining closeness to Karunanidhi. He contested and won the Lok Sabha election from Sivakasi in 1998 as part of the BJP-led NDA.
Karunanidhi is now desperate to retain his once trusted lieutenant within the rainbow alliance. A united front would be the DPA’s biggest trump card. While everyone is waiting to see which side Vaiko will swing, the MDMK chief has sought refuge in his ancestral home. He’s busy conferring with colleagues on his next move, which will not only decide the fate of the two main political fronts in Tamil Nadu, but also redefine his own party’s prospects.
Today, the ‘puratchi puyal’ (revolutionary storm as partymen call him) is the most sought after politician and his party could well decide the fate of the two major Dravidian parties—the ruling AIADMK and the main opposition DMK—in the coming Assembly election.
With the political stakes high, the MDMK chief is playing his cards close to his chest. While the political buzz is that the firebrand politician is likely to swing Amma’s way, Vaiko insists he is still a part of the DMK-led Democratic Progressive Alliance in Tamil Nadu, which includes also the MDMK, the Congress, PMK, the two Left parties and the Indian Union Muslim League.
But even while mouthing diplomatic niceties about MDMK’s standing in the DPA, Vaiko has reportedly informed the Congress leadership that he might be doing a Paswan in Tamil Nadu—back the UPA at the Centre and go with Amma for the state election.
Strangely, the most wanted politician in Tamil Nadu has a rather bleak track record in the Assembly. Since its launch in 1993 December, the MDMK has not won a single Assembly seat. In the last Assembly election in May 2001, Vaiko quit the DMK-led National Democratic Alliance, upset with the ‘‘measly offer’’ of seats and went solo. His party drew a blank despite fielding candidates in 211 of the 234 Assembly constituencies. But though fighting on its own, the party polled 4.47 per cent of the votes.
The MDMK rank and file is in no mood for any misadventures this time. In fact, Vaiko is under tremendous pressure from his cadres to quit the DPA and join forces with the chief minister and AIADMK supremo, J Jayalalithaa, even though she was responsible for his 19-month incarceration under POTA.
Known for his blatant pro-LTTE stand, Vaiko, who was a trusted lieutenant of Karunanidhi, quit the DMK in 1993 after he was accused of conspiring with the LTTE to kill his mentor.
It was the AIADMK that tied up with the MDMK first for the 1998 Lok Sabha election, endorsing the latter’s political credibility. In the subsequent 1999 Lok Sabha election, after the AIADMK pulled down the Vajpayee government, the MDMK remained in the NDA.
After the last Assembly election when the MDMK snapped ties with the DMK, the two got together again after Karunanidhi visited Vaiko in prison.
Vaiko wore his LTTE leanings on his sleeve. He shot into limelight in 1989 after his mysterious boat trip to Jaffna to spend a month in the jungles with LTTE leader Vellupillai Pirapaharan. The MDMK leader named his grandson Pirapaharan and his home in Kalingapatti boasts a framed photograph of the LTTE supremo.
Vaiyapuri Gopalsamy, who changed his name to Vaiko some years ago, was drawn into Dravidian politics in his student days during the anti-Hindi agitation. His organisation skills were apparent during his early days in politics when he headed the DMK’s Palayamkottai (in Tiruneveli district) cadre wing. The fieriest speaker in the DMK, Vaiko made his first speech on a public platform when he was barely eight.
He became a Rajya Sabha member first in 1978, rising rapidly within the party gaining closeness to Karunanidhi. He contested and won the Lok Sabha election from Sivakasi in 1998 as part of the BJP-led NDA.
Karunanidhi is now desperate to retain his once trusted lieutenant within the rainbow alliance. A united front would be the DPA’s biggest trump card. While everyone is waiting to see which side Vaiko will swing, the MDMK chief has sought refuge in his ancestral home. He’s busy conferring with colleagues on his next move, which will not only decide the fate of the two main political fronts in Tamil Nadu, but also redefine his own party’s prospects.
