The nomination of M Venkaiah Naidu as the NDA candidate for the post of vice-president has brought glee to the people of Tamil Nadu though he hails from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.
The decision of the combined Opposition parties to field Chennai-based Gopalkrishna Gandhi as the vice-presidential candidate had created a feeling among political pundits that the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi would sail through in the hustings as the AIADMK too may be forced the support him because of his Tamil Nadu roots. “The AIADMK would vote for Gandhi because they may find it difficult not to support him,” a Chennai-based political commentator had told The Pioneer the day Gandhl’s name was announced by the combined Opposition parties.
But what this commentator and others like him forgot was the speech delivered by J Jayalalithaa, the then Chief Minister, on July 23, 2017, while inaugurating the second phase of the Chennai Metro Rail Project at Chennai. During this event Jayalalithaa had complimented Naidu to the hilt.
“This function was rescheduled for today because I insisted that Venkaiah Naidu should participate in it. As Parliament is in session, I instructed the officials to schedule the function for Saturday to enable him to attend the function. I am really glas that he took part in this function,” a beaming Jayalalithaa had told the audience.
“Venkaiah Naidu is a good friend of Tamil Nadu. He is the first in protecting Tamil Nadu’s welfare and obtaining Centre’s approval for the State’s schemes,” said the then Chief Minister who always enjoyed a friendly relations with Naidu even when the AIADMK and the BJP were opposing each other. It may also be remembered that Naidu was the guest of honour in the last two major functions attended by Jayalalithaa before she was admitted to the hospital in September 2016.
There was no possibility of the AIADMK MPs voting for a candidate other than Naidu who always enjoyed a special bond with their supreme leader. Naidu was the first Union Minister to visit the Apollo Hospital to enquire the status of Jayalalithaa’s health. He was also present throughout the final journey of the AIADMK supremo who breathed her last on December 5, 2016. Though some in the Opposition had questioned the propriety of a Union Minister belonging to another party supervising the arrangements for the final journey of the departed Chief Minister, many peoplein Tamil Nadu and elsewhere saw it as a rare example of cordial Centre-State ties. He was the first Union Minister to rush to Chennai when the metro was devastated by unprecedented floods in December 2015 and the Varda cyclone in January 2017.
Naidu, was popular among the Chennai media as he gave wonderful copies for political reporters whenever he was in city. His one liners and tongue-in-the cheek repartees have become so popular with the media that even when the BJP was out of power, scribes rushed in to catch up with Naidu whenever he was in town.
“It is operation in Kerala an cooperation in other places. Gusthi in Kerala and Dosthi in New Delhi,” was how he described the CPI(M)-Congress ties in New Delhi.
As vice-president of the country, Naidu would be more focussed more on intellectual discourses. Tamil Nadu is waiting to hear the same style of wordplays from Naidu.