It was business as usual in Tamil Nadu by Thursday morning after the last two days’ unprecedented scenes following the demise of DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi. Political activities and statement wars were conspicuously absent on Thursday though the supporters of the DMK and its allies were vocal in their criticism over the refusal of permission by Tamil Nadu Government to inter Karunanidhi at Marina Beach. It was only because of the Madras High Court order, the DMK could bury Karunanidhi near the memorial of his mentor C N Annadurai.
Interestingly, more than the AIADMK , it is the BJP and the RSS which are the favourite whipping boys of the Dravidian major. All spokesmen of various friendly outfits of the DMK blamed the BJP and the RSS for the Tamil Nadu Government’s action of denying permission to inter the patriarch at Anna Memorial.
“Political animosity and conspiracies of those operating behind the scenes were the reason,” said M K Stalin, Karunanidhi’s son and working president of the DMK. This was taken up by others who launched an all-out attack on the Sangh Parivar outfits.
Though the NDA Government at the Centre declared a National Mourning and offered military honours to Karunanidhi, it is yet to cut the ice with the DMK and its allies.
The immediate agenda in front of the DMK is to convene the meeting of the highest decision making bosy of the party, the General Council, and adopt a resolution expressing condolences over the death of the party chief and to elect/nominate a new president. Though it is an open secret that Stalin is the chosen heir of the DMK, the party leadership wants to give out an impression that the elevation of Stalin was as per democratic norms.
The internal squabbles in the Karunanidhi clan has taken a backseat following the demise of the party chief. If the unity which was visible among family members on Tuesday and Wednesday holds on in days to come, the AIADMK is in for major trouble. The Marina Beach fiasco has resulted in the AIADMK suffering a set-back though real facts are stranger than fiction.
The withdrawal of all petitions filed in the Madras High Court seeking a ban on construction of memorials at Marina Beach has raised many eyebrows though no one is willing to come out openly questioning the modus operandi employed by the main characters in the “political drama” staged in the intervening nights of August 7 and 8.