MDMK general secretary Vaiko on Saturday said he was not in favour of his son Durai Vaiyapuri entering politics. The frail-looking Mr Vaiko, expressed disillusionment over his own 56-year-long political career, saying, “I have destroyed my life to some extent”. The MDMK leader however, added that the party’s decision would prevail ultimately.
Mr Vaiyapuri has in recent times been participating in the events being organised by the party indicating about his possible political plunge in the near future.
As he emerged from the polling station at Kalingapatti, his native place, after casting his vote in the second phase of rural civic polls along with his son on Saturday, Mr. Vaiko told the waiting reporters that he did not want to see his son suffer like him. He was responding to a question if he would give Mr Vaiyapuri a prominent responsibility in the party in near future.
“I have struggled a lot for 56 years in politics… while travelling in car for lakhs of kilometers and covering thousands of kilometers during my padayatra. I have languished for five-and-a-half years in prison. I have destroyed my life to some extent… Let it go with myself and my son should not suffer like this,” Mr. Vaiko told reporters.
The MDMK leader, who was not his usual vibrant self owing to health issues, also added that the party’s district secretaries meet to be held in Chennai on October 20 would take a final call on giving greater responsibility to Mr. Vaiyapuri.
Mr. Vaiko was immensely happy about the peaceful polling in his native place.
“I do not know who supports whom in this election… But the polling is going on peacefully as I can see an unprecedented unity created by Durai Vaiyapuri in my village, which is the happiest thing for me,” he noted.
On MDMK’s winning prospects, Mr. Vaiko hoped that the party would win Kuruvikulam panchayat union in which Kalingapatti is situated. “I can’t predict about other unions in the district as we will come to know only when the votes are counted,” he said adding that the DMK, the ruling party, would sweep the civic polls.
On the recent mowing down of farmers by a car in Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Vaiko said like Talibans (in Afghanistan), a group of barbarians, who never respected even judiciary, had orchestrated these gruesome and merciless killings, which should not be pardoned.
