The journey ahead for the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary V.K. Sasikala, who is slated to become Chief Minister, is going to be challenging, both on the administrative and political fronts.
On the political front, Ms. Sasikala’s top priority would be to get elected to the Assembly. The constitutional requirement is that this has to be done within six months of becoming the Chief Minister. At present, only one seat is lying vacant, which is R.K. Nagar in Chennai. Immediately after Ms. Sasikala became the general secretary in late December, Perambur’s Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) and the AIADMK’s North Chennai district unit’s secretary P. Vetrivel formally requested her to contest from the constituency.
One AIADMK leader argues that to be seen as the true inheritor of the Jayalalithaa legacy, Ms Sasikala should contest from R.K. Nagar, which was held by the former Chief Minister at the time of her death. Otherwise, she will be on weaker political wicket. Also, Deepa, the niece of Jayalalithaa, has announced her intention of contesting from the seat.
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However, another leader says that it is normal for political figures to weigh the pros and cons before choosing any constituency, and so, Ms. Sasikala can take a pragmatic view about the constituency from which she would like to contest. More than a month ago, the Revenue Minister, who is an MLA from the Thirumangalam constituency in Madurai district, offered to quit his membership in the Assembly and there is also a perception that any constituency in Madurai or Theni district would be safer than R.K. Nagar, an urban constituency.
Besides, elections to local bodies will be a major test for her to demonstrate and establish her political credentials. The polls are likely to be held this summer. In the 2011 elections, the AIADMK made a clean sweep in all the municipal corporations and registered an overwhelming victory in municipalities, town panchayats and other local bodies. Whether Ms. Sasikala likes it or not, her performance will be compared with the showing in 2011, another leader points out.
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On the administrative front, the existing spell of severe drought, demonetisation, economic downturn and impending uncertainties in the event of the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) are all expected to have an adverse effect on the overall economy of the State. Even about five months ago, for the current financial year, only a modest growth rate of 4.8% was projected for the State’s Own Tax Revenue (SOTR), which accounts for about 60% of the total revenue receipts. The State would have a revenue deficit of ₹15,855 crore.