Apart from the division in the opposition votes, it was the intra-party squabbles that led to dismal show of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in the Assembly elections in Salem district. Of the 11constituencies in the district, the party fielded its candidates in eight, while allotting two seats to Congress and one to the Makkal DMDK.
The DMK-led front was trounced in all but one constituency. Its cup of sorrow was full with the party nominee P. A. Murugesan being pushed to the third position in Edappadi constituency, which it had won a few times in the past. The sole consolation for the DMK is the victory of R. Rajendran, secretary of the central district unit of the party and close confidant of M. K. Stalin.
The DMK’s reverse in Salem district is attributed to the factional feuds.The supporters of Mr. Rajendran and ‘Veerapandi’ A. Rajendran, in-charge of the Salem East district unit of the party, did not see eye to eye till the last minute. This had an impact on electioneering in the entire district, says a senior cadre of the party.
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As such the supporters of the rival factions did not evince interest in campaigning.
“The party leadership is well aware of this fact. It should have taken more effective steps and issued a stern warning to both the warring groups. Had the local leaders displayed unity at this critical juncture, the party would have captured at least half a dozen seats with much ease”, he averred. In this connection, he pointed out that former Salem Mayor J. Rekha Priyardarshini losing by a meagre 2,000-odd votes in Gangavalli (reserved) constituency, the former Deputy Mayor C. Paneerselvam lost by 7,247 votes in Salem West despite anti-incumbency factor working heavily against the AIADMK incumbent G. Venkatachalam. The Makkal DMDK sitting MLA S. R. Parthiban lost by 6,282 votes in Mettur to AIADMK candidate.
The defeat of experienced ‘Veerapandi’ A. Rajendran at the hands of his cousin P. Manonmani, a novice to politics, by a margin of over 14,000 votes is a major blow to DMK.
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Even north district secretary R. Rajendran managed to win in Salem North only by a margin of 9,873 votes. But for the factionalism, he would have scored a thumping win, the party sources said.
The local party men are also unhappy that the district units were not properly consulted in the selection of candidates. Moreover, there was also no proper coordination between the DMK and the alliance partners. The election meetings addressed by even leaders such as M. K. Stalin and Kanimozhi, failed to attract the supporters of other fraternal parties.
The DMK was also heavily handicapped due to the absence of electioneering by the party chief M. Karunanidhi. “Mr. Karunanidhi has been untiringly shouldering the party’s reach-out to the people and mobilise support for the DMK led front’s nominees. His absence this time had a telling impact on DMK fortunes”, concede the DMK cadre in one voice.
“The party leadership is well aware of this fact. It should have taken more effective steps and issued a stern warning to both the warring groups. Had the local leaders displayed unity at this critical juncture, the party would have captured at least half a dozen seats with much ease”,