The Road Forks Off

THE cracks are all too plainly visible in the Federation of Regional Parties. Once a cohesive grouping within the UF the DMK, the TMC, the AGP and the TDP tossed and drifted in divergent directions in a week of political turbulence. The most serious fallout was the TMC opting to stay out of the UF government, accusing Its ally in Tamil Nadu, the DMK, and the Chandrababu Naidu-led Top Of running G.K. Moopanar out of the race for the prime minister's chair As TMC legislators who had come to Delhi to 'swear in' their leader vented their ire on the DMK, a question mark loomed large over their strategic partnership in Tamil Nadu.

What has hurt the TMC most is that not only did Moopanar miss the bus, the party's "political integrity" was questioned by other UF constituents. Stung to the quick, it decided to pull out of the government and merely extend outside support. A strongly-worded statement released after a meeting of TMC MPs in New Delhi on April 20 articulated this feeling of hurt.

The Left and the JD had cited Moopanar's 'Sonia loyalist' tag and expressed fears that he would be virtually a Congress prime minister, To this, the TMC leadership's riposte is that for 10 months the UF had no qualms about using the TMC as a crutch.

The party also cites the fact that the Left, which is making a big noise about Moopanar's suspect affiliation now, had suggested his name when the UF government formed last year. Says TMC MP Jaya Natarajan: "The basic premise of any coalition is trust. When that's not there, it is meaningless to be in it. The TMC was born out of its quest for self-respect. It can't give it up for the sake of power.

Many in the TMC see a sinister plot by Karunanidhi and Naidu to marginalise their leader. Perhaps an easy view to take in retrospect, when the exigencies of coalition politics have had their say--the DMK had itself promoted Moopanar's name.

Karunanidhi told Outlook: "I came here on April 17 to make Moopanar the PM. I went to meet everyone to solicit their support. The DMK alone suggested Moopanar's name. No one else was speaking up for him. But the Left and the JD vehemently opposed him. If there was no consensus for Moopanar, how can you blame the DMK?"

Such explanations offer no comfort. At Satyamurthi Bhavan, the TMC headquarters in Chennai, party general secretary S.G. Vinayakamurthy minced no words: "The TMC has been cheated in the drama enacted in Delhi." Irate party MPs in Delhi too cried hoarse about the 'betrayal'.

Not surprisingly Karunanidhi is eager to see the controversy laid to rest. He told Outlook: "By finding fault with us, some people are trying to destroy the DMK-me relationship. I believe Moopanar and other TMC leaders won't give space for it."
In the ultimate analysis, the Federal Front platform has emerged feeder from all this. The TDP was ostensibly neutral, with Naidu as arc-mediator. The AGP clung to the Left line. As for the DMK, it did promote Moopanar initially but, at the very least, an element of unease will have forever crept into the partnership in Tamil Nadu. At worst, the partners may part ways. Either way, It will take a while for this wound to heal.