A churning that seems self-inviting

The equation among the NDA constituents in Tamil Nadu has taken a drastic turn.

Pattali Makkal Katchi founder S. Ramadoss’ remark on Tuesday that his party would lead an alliance in the 2016 Assembly polls has put a question mark over the very survival of the ‘rainbow coalition’ put together for the Lok Sabha elections.

The question of who should lead the alliance during the Lok Sabha polls remained a thorn in the flesh of the BJP, which desperately tried to cobble together a credible front to take on the two principal Dravidian parties. At the end, no formal declaration on the leadership was made, though the Vijayakant-led DMDK pocketed a majority of the seats (14 of the 39 constituencies).

In this context, Dr. Ramadoss’ assertion is bound to upset the other allies, including the MDMK led by Vaiko.

Incidentally, Mr. Vaiko, too, is said to be quite unhappy with the BJP. In the last two months, he has consistently opposed the Centre on an array of issues and is likely to spell out his stand on the alliance at the party’s conference scheduled for September.

The DMDK, which drew a blank in the polls, seems to be the only ally that has been consistently praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s functioning and most of his decisions.

But Mr. Ramadoss’ statement was by no means a sudden one.

In 2013, the PMK made it clear that it would project the former Union Minister, Anbumani Ramadoss, as the chief ministerial candidate in the run-up to the 2016 elections.

Mr. Anbumani hoped for a berth in the Union Cabinet after the BJP’s victory in the Lok Sabha polls, but the disappointment that followed has hastened attempts to prepare the ground for 2016.

Also churning the alliance is some shrewd political manoeuvring by the BJP. Its decision to give the AIADMK the post of Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker has not gone down well with its allies, who suspect the BJP could gravitate towards Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s party ahead of the elections.

Further muddying the waters are rumours about the BJP trying to rope in actor Rajnikanth into its fold. While there has been no official word from the party, such a development will impact political alignments, given the strained equations in the past between the superstar and some of the BJP allies.