Once the election date is announced, politicians are generally expected to launch a no-holds barred attack on opposition parties and rival groups across the ideological divide. Now that the times have changed, the political classes may think the whole plot is a bit trite.
So, for a change, we have cadres storming their own party offices, beating up local leaders, burning effigies of their party colleagues and even laying siege to the residence of the ‘high command’ — all for making a ‘humble request’ to the party leadership to change the nominee for a particular constituency.
While this act of rebellion may take different forms in different parties — in the AIADMK, for instance, though there may not be any outward act of defiance, the frequent change of candidates is one indicator of the resentment that the choice has triggered among local party men — the phenomenon is fairly common across major political parties.
And, political observers attribute the increased intensity of such protests to a couple of factors.
A.R. Venkatachalapathy of the Madras Institute of Development Studies, says: “Twenty years ago, a grass-root level DMK member could aspire for a seat and get one purely based on his hard work. Today, it is not possible. In an alliance, it is the intra-coalition dynamics, wherein one party does not want to leave room for the emergence of a viable alternative. Aravakurichi, where Congress aspirant Jothimani was denied a seat, is a good example of this.”
Political commentator Gnani adds: “If you see increasing desperation for seats now, it is because this is a do-or-die battle not just for parties but also for many leaders. That way, this is a watershed election as it will set the political trend for the next 10 years, one way or the other. But cadres questioning the leaders is good for democracy in the long run, as this the only way alternative leadership can emerge. So, what looks like a selfish act of one person or group [of seeking seat] has a larger beneficial spin-off.”
There is no truth in the allegation that candidates are decided by the top leadership without taking into consideration the aspirations of the foot-soldiers of the party, says T.K.S. Elangovan, a spokesperson of the DMK.
“For example, T.P.M. Mohideen Khan won thrice consecutively from the Palayamkottai constituency. Even when the party lost in 9 out of 10 constituencies in the district in the 2011 election, he won. He is not very rich but very close to the people. This debunks the notion we prefer only those who are ‘powerful’ otherwise,” he adds.
Mr. Elangovan attributes the pitched intra-party battle for seats this time to the belief that DMK will romp home victorious. “In the last election, we contested in 119 seats and gave away 115 seats. But we did not witness the kind of protests we are seeing today. So, today if you find people desperate for a seat, it is only because they want to be part of a winning alliance.”
