The PMK has begun introspecting on its rout in the recent Lok Sabha polls, in which its candidates lost by significant margins in all seven constituencies from where it contested as part of the AIADMK-led alliance.
Sources said PMK founder S. Ramadoss held a meeting of senior functionaries at his farmhouse in Thailapuram last week to examine the results. The leadership reflected on the disparity between the party’s membership on paper and the votes it had polled. “A close scrutiny indicated that there was a lot of disparity. We have been asked to look into the issue,” a source who was present at the meeting said.
A senior party functionary said many had informally stated that the leadership’s decision to ally with the AIADMK after fiercely criticising it in the months leading up to the polls was one of the main reasons for the poll debacle.
However, the party is keen on continuing its alliance with the AIADMK for the local body polls. K. Balu, who heads the Advocates’ Forum for Social Justice, which is affiliated to the PMK, said the party’s pact with the AIADMK and the BJP will continue. “The linking of Krishna and Godavari rivers has been taken up by the Centre. As far as the Salem-Chennai 8-lane highway project is concerned, there is an ongoing court case and the State government can’t do anything. The alliance will continue,” he said.
“We have taken up issues like prohibition, representation for Tamil Nadu in the appointment of Supreme Court judges and so on. We will continue to focus on these issues and look for ways to resolve them,” he said.
General body meeting
The party’s legal wing will hold its general body meeting in Chennai on June 23. Dr. Ramadoss is expected to address the meeting. “While there is no specific agenda, the poll results, issues related to the Backward Classes and how to mount a legal challenge will be discussed,” Mr. Balu said.
Similar meetings will be held at the taluk level in every district to strengthen the organisation at the grass roots.
