‘Nothing can sabotage DMK-led secular alliance in Tamil Nadu’

TNCC president K.S. Alagiri downplays the significance of his row with Vaiko.

Notwithstanding the recent friction between the Congress and the MDMK, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K.S. Alagiri insists that nothing can sabotage the Secular Progressive Alliance led by the DMK. He says the alliance will continue for the local body polls as it was shaped by the ideology of secularism and not by narrow considerations. Excerpts:

You and MDMK leader Vaiko were involved in a face-off over his stand on the Congress’s role in Jammu and Kashmir. Has the Secular Progressive Alliance come under strain in Tamil Nadu?

Definitely not. [DMK president] Mr. Stalin has built the alliance in such a way that nothing can sabotage it. We swept the polls in Tamil Nadu. I have 50 years of experience in politics, and have never witnessed an alliance as cohesive as the one we have [now]. Mr. Vaiko levelled some allegations [against the Congress in Parliament on the J&K issue], and we responded. The issue is over. Personally, I hold Mr. Vaiko in high regard.

Will the friction caused by suspended Congress leader Karate Thiagarajan affect your alliance with the DMK for the local body polls?

I will not allow anything [that goes] against the decision of the AICC [All India Congress Committee] to align with the DMK as long as I remain the TNCC president. Mr. Stalin’s statement that [Congress leader] Mr. Rahul Gandhi will be the Prime Minister was an unforgettable moment in the history of the Congress party. It galvanised party cadre across the country, and wherever I went, Congress leaders would ask, “How is Mr. Stalin?” There is a rare bonding between the families of [late] DMK leader Kalaignar (Karunanidhi) and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. Above all, our alliance is shaped by the ideology of secularism. Only the Congress, the Communist parties and the DMK uphold secularism in the country today.

Mr. Rahul Gandhi has stepped down as Congress president at a time when the party is going through a crisis…

The idea behind his decision has been misunderstood. Accountability is very important for leadership. The party faced an electoral setback when he was the president. The Congress continued its journey as if it were an ordinary debacle. It was wrong. He expected that the leaders of various States would come out with an explanation for the defeat and own responsibility. But they did not. So, he took responsibility and stepped down. Mahatma Gandhi had adopted a similar approach during the freedom struggle. Even now, Mr. Rahul Gandhi is the leader of the Congress. That we have not explained the intention and the objective behind his resignation to the people is a failure of the AICC and the State units. We will soon launch a campaign to explain his decision to the people. Mr. Rahul Gandhi is not waging a battle against individuals like Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah. He is striving hard to protect the idea of secularism.

Critics argue that the Congress’s appeasement of minorities led to the BJP winning the election with a brute majority...

The RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh] has been running this campaign against the Congress for years. Neither the Congress nor the other secular parties had resisted their propaganda. They ran a similar campaign even when Mahatma Gandhi was alive. Gandhiji foiled the RSS ideology and the organisation assassinated him. [Lord] Ram remained a hero so long as he was in the hands of Gandhiji. The RSS and the BJP converted him into a villain. The nature of God changes depending on who invokes him. The RSS and the BJP are invoking the name of Ram to shed blood.

Now, the Prime Minister has announced a Chief of Defence Staff, which will destroy democracy. The architects of the Constitution and previous rulers have always been careful regarding the powers of the Army. By creating three armed forces, they ensured that the Army did not interfere with politics in the country. A Chief of Defence Staff will always be the choice of the Prime Minister, and could use the Army according to his whim. It happened in Pakistan, and the country witnessed many military coups. We cannot afford to forget that.