Dynastic politics of India: Case of Tamil politicians

-DR. ABDUL RUFF COLACHAL 

_______________

Instead of kings  using the common people under feudalism  now, under capitalism,  the elected regime and people's representatives use  people  for their own  upward  movement. 

Indian democracy is peculiar in that respect with its own brand politics. 

Castes, religions, money and muscle, among  other  variables,  play  vital roles in Indian politics.  Besides, anti-Islamism, Hindutva and Pakistan etc also have their place in Indian  poll politics as these issues  keep coming up in electioneering and  key campaign speeches. .

Dynastic and family politics as part of  democracy  have badly shaped Indian polity..  

Sons and dear daughters are the major concern of politicians of India  wherever they maybe and these are considered by politicians as their heir to rule after them the areas, constituencies, the states and nation 

These major kith and kin are more important for politicians who are supposed serve the nation than the rest of people around.  Hence many political leaders have taken it as their prerogative to push through their  kith and kin in into politics in a big way by asking the party workers to promote their darlings.  

And the workers and small scale leader promote and pamper the offspring of their leaders as their top priority in politics.  Some of them argue that the presence of the offspring  helps  promote  the party.

Party  makes all out effort to  promote the close relatives of leaders as its key policy, if the politicians do not have children. 

There is no state in India where dynastic politics does not rule the roost. While  the trend has reached awfully worst situation, in some  other states the  problem is still not posing any alarming threat. 

Not only the North Indian states, but in South as well the trend is prevalent and none seems to question these hollow democratic traditions enshrined in practical Indian politics known for its communal overtones. 

If one thinks  only the regional politicians promote the dynastic politics, but even  at the national level too  the leaders are eager to see their kith and kin are well settled in politics before they either retire or die. 

From Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to Kerala and Tamil Nadu families run politics. 

DMK and ADMK, the  two major parties that alternatively rule the Tamil State, are dominated by family politics. In DMk, the party chief M. Karunanidhi  has already created  heirs-apparent to take over power in Tamilnadu and share power at the centre. 

In fact, not just sons and daughters are now leaders of the party both in the Parliament and state assembly, but even other close relatives have been pushed up the ladder to be the central government cabinet ministers. 

Karunanidhi  gradually introduced  his  elder son, daughter and other relatives to share political profits. 

Apart from his two sons and daughter,  his nephews Dayanidhi Maran,  2G scam fame Raja are other relatives Karunanidhi brought to politics with seats in Assembly and Parliament. Both nephews were in central cabinet  but removed subsequently.  Reports suggest Karunanidhi has sent his Raja to  Singapore upon he was sacked  by Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan under public pressure. 

it is awful that  DMK and ADMK leaders deal in roaring business, including estate and  sand, etc. CM Jayalalitha is still facing court cases  relating to her disproportionate wealth. It looks as if a good part of Tamil Nadu belongs to these party men. 

That is the  wealth they have acquired in politics and that is  essence of Indian politics. 

Karunanidhi and DMK party have  faced a difficult situation  in controlling the elder son Alagiri because Karunanidhi promotes only his younger son and does not quite actively canvas for Alagiri. 

As family  quarrel  took ugly turn, the DMK chief and former chief minister and CM in perpetual waiting, M Karunanidhi has suspended wef 24^th January his elder son MK Alagiri MP, from all party posts.

Alagiri is temporarily suspended from the party. In a statement issued here, party general secretary K Anbazhagan said Alagiri was creating confusion in the party by urging party cadres not to work and criticizing the disciplinary action taken by the party against some members for their anti-party activities. He said the continuation of Alagiri in the party is not proper and would destroy the party discipline. Anbazhagan said the members should accept this decision taken in the interests of the party and should stand united for the functioning of the party.

The DMK chief's decision to suspend Alagiri was reportedly taken in consultation with his younger son and heir apparent MK Stalin, strengthening the belief that Alagiri is paying the price not for "anti-party activities" but for a series of confrontations with his younger brother that escalated after the ailing, aging Karunanidhi officially proclaimed Stalin as his heir.

Karunanidhi has a few wives and many children. Alagiri is his eldest son form one wife and Stalin is his younger son form another wife and between these two there is big  gap in the party. Karunanidhi has promoted Stalin very early in politics to make him the mayor of Madras corporation and MLA and minister in his cabinet. Alagiri was inducted a bit late, perhaps to make Stalin more popular. 

Earlier in January, Karunanidhi had warned Alagiri and others that the party take action against those who voiced views contrary to the official line. Alagiri, the then south zone organizing secretary of DMK, had opposed an alliance with DMDK in the coming Lok Sabha polls.

Alagiri's opposition came after Karunanidhi had earlier said he would be happy if there was an alliance between the two parties. Karunanidhi termed Alagiri's views regrettable and condemnable, saying they were contrary to the views expressed by him as party president.


The feud between Alagiri and Stalin is of long duration, and manifested violently back in February 1997 when the Tamil daily Dinakaran published a poll showing that Stalin was universally preferred to his elder brother. Incensed at the poll and accompanying article critical of Alagiri, his supporters attacked the Madurai office of the paper and set it on fire, killing three. Ironically, Dinakaran is part of the Sun TV media group owned by Karunanidhi’s grand-nephew Kalanidhi Maran; this fact led Alagiri to accuse his father and younger brother of using a captive mouthpiece to malign him.

Alagiri, the second son of Karunanidhi, did not have an official role in politics till late 2007, when he shifted base to Madurai and organized by-poll victories in 2008. During this phase he earned a reputation for harnessing muscle power to harass opponents and extend the DMK’s grip over the region. For his efforts, he was rewarded with a Lok Sabha ticket from Madurai during the 2009 general elections. When he won, as he was expected to, the DMK used its influence as a UPA ally to get him a berth as Cabinet Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers.

In New Delhi, Alagiri soon won a reputation for sloth, rarely if ever attending office, never participating in debates, and refusing to answer questions raised against his ministry. His tenure ended in March 2013 when his junior minister Srikanth Jena cited various irregularities in the ministry’s functioning, which in turn sparked allegations of corruption to the tune of hundreds of crores. Alagiri was removed from his post and Jena was rewarded with independent charge of the ministry.

Alagiri returned to his Madurai base, and made attempts to get back into the state political scene but was consistently sidelined by Karunanidhi and Stalin. This in turn led Alagiri to make a series of vitriolic statements against his father and younger brother, under the guise of criticizing the party functioning. The DMK leadership – that is to say, Karunanidhi and Stalin – issued several warnings against the rebellious elder son; it all boiled to a head when, heedless of the latest warning to not criticize party decisions, Alagiri went ahead and spoke out against the DMK’s projected alliance with the MDMK, another Dravidian party to promote a caste leader,  for the upcoming general elections.

Alagiri, never known to take things lying down, might react harshly to the official action. He has a muscular hold over Madurai and neighboring regions, and could conceivably mount a successful rebellion in that region against his father’s party.

DMK politics is based on muscle-money power.. DMK has made Karunanidhi family  more important than  people of Tamil Nadu.

Sons of Karunanidhi  want to share the state  between them. 

However, that is not the real story and problem people of Tamil Nadu are facing now. 

Of course, it is not just Tamil politicians  who fool the people  but  that is the  case of most of the states, if not all, of  them in India. but Tamil Nadu is a  special case  for the intensity of  the  problem, which has reached   the  vulgar and  ridiculous  situation. 

Kerala which claims to be highly literate state does not have got anything  better face  to show to world,, because here every caste  and  sub-castes  have their own political outfits and share the spoils of the regime by being a part of the coalition. The leaders, families and close  friends mind money and control a part of the government  resources. Prices of commodities and charges keep increasing  in Kerala , which gets huge sums of money regularly  from  abroad, especially Gulf  thanks  to  the fact that overwhelming people from the state are working there. 

Irrespective of  system of governance and  politics, common people remain at the periphery of the state. 

Shame Tamil politics

Centuries have  passed by when people  began  organizing themselves into governments.  but the practice of using  common people  by hte rich and self-centered  individuals for their own benefits  has stayed intact.  The regime, and leaders want the  people to promote and propagate them as their duty, in stead of  protecting their genuine interests. 

Common  masses have remained  mere spectators  for the  political showmen and women and they are the most convenient tools for the rich and agents of  multinationals and foreign agencies. 

While the  leaders  reap  financial  benefits  from all  regime deals,  including the nuclear deals,  the people are expected to  just suffer  all negative effects of the  criminal  operations of the political parties and leaders. 

With the realignment of  political and  rich forces with secret deals,  the common people are the  worst hit. 

It is really a huge democratic shame that  Tamil Nadu politics reels under the family feuds of Karunanidhi as if Tamil Nadu's  as well as India's  fate depends entirely on the resolution of infighting inside the Karunanidhi home. 

Incumbent  chief minister Jayalalitha is not quite ready to let the Karunandhi family  return to power in Tamil Nadu, making  more profits from all businesses they have. 

In fact,  caste politics  brought Karunanidhi and DMK,  comprising more low caste  people,  to power in 1965 by defeating  an aimless Congress government.  But the party has legitimized corruption as the  major input of democracy in the state. 

Obviously, Kejriwal  and his Aam Aadmi Party have come  to rescue the common people form the  clutches of  corporate and rich classes the control parliament and  regime. A systemic change his disciple and Delhi CM  Kejriwal is  attempting now would be  fruitful if Hazare also lends his  full an d unconditional support, ignoring what the Congress and BJP people tell him -  he is not bound by their advice. 

With power Hazare can certainly change  entire  format of governance!