VCK cadre fuming over allotment of single seat

The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leaders and cadre have voiced displeasure over allotment of a single Lok Sabha seat (Chidambaram Reserve constituency) to the party by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led front.

The Dalit inhabitants of as many as 22 villages in Cuddalore district, including Adari, Rettaikurichi, Poyyalampadi and Ja.Engal, are concerned over the lack of importance accorded to the VCK in the DMK-front for the purpose of contesting the coming Lok Sabha elections.

S.Thirumaran, State general secretary (propaganda), told

The Hindu that the VCK had all along been with the DMK through all situations. In the 2001 Assembly elections, the front allotted 10 seats (eight in Tamil Nadu and two in Puducherry).

Again in 2009 Parliamentary elections it gave two LS seats — Chidambaram and Villupuram — and in 2011 it set apart 12 Assembly seats to the VCK. Mr. Thirumaran said unlike in the previous years, as of now, the organisational set-up of the VCK in the State was quite strong.

“Therefore, the allocation of a single seat to the VCK is an injustice meted out to the party and the Dalit community . I hope the DMK front would reconsider its decision and allot more number of LS seats to the VCK in conformity with the Dalit population,” Mr. Thirumaran said.

Party functionaries Anandan and Krishnaraj said the DMK front failed to take cognisance of the fact that VCK, a long-time ally, easily had the necessary cadre base to make the front a winning one.

Even after hard bargaining by party leaders such as Thol.Thirumavalavan and D.Ravikumar, the front remained unyielding in sanctioning more than one Lok Sabha seat. The DMK might be of the view that of the two Lok Sabha seats allotted to the VCK (Chidambaram and Villupuram) in the previous parliamentary elections, it could win only Chidambaram seat. But in the changed scenario equating the VCK with any other fledgling party would not do justice to the former. They further stated that the Dalit community had become a force to reckon with and its political awareness was on par with any other mainstream political party.