State BJP sees no threat from PWF.
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Chennai: The state unit of the BJP here does not appear to be rattled by People’s Welfare Front (PWF) attempt to woo Vijayakanth, DMDK leader. And given his frequent harangue targeting most invariably both the major Dravidian parties, the saffron party hopes that he will remain in the NDA. Given the party’s vote share which swelled to 5.56 per cent in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections — third after ruling AIADMK and DMK — and ahead of its ally the DMDK (which got 5.19 per cent) and Congress (4.37 per cent), the party does not see the PWF as threat at all.
“Vijayakanth is a matured political leader. He does not take hasty decisions. Even when Vaiko (MDMK chief) parted ways with the NDA and PMK displayed its political ambitions, Vijayakanth had solidly backed the BJP’s NDA. Where will he go, definitely not with the DMK and AIADMK,” says M. Chakravarthy, BJP state vice president. “So far he has not displayed any signs of breaking away from the BJP-led NDA, so why should we react?” asks Vanathi Srinivasan, BJP state vice president.
“Everyone knows that Vaiko is unreliable as an ally and emotional too. He could have taken full advantage on the Sri Lankan issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had he only rolled the dice well while being our ally. But he chose otherwise,” she added. But the flurry of activities post the December deluge, particularly in taking up the relief and rehabilitation works, has appeared to have brought the BJP and AIADMK closer.
This may be a reason for the DMDK leader to sulk. But more than an electoral tie-up with other political parties, past experience shows that the ‘Captain’s forces gained only when it had a truck with the AIADMK in the 2011 Assembly polls. “The Centre voluntarily extended all assistance to Chennai and rest of Tamil Nadu badly ravaged by the floods. This cannot be construed as both the parties coming together,” a senior leader pointed out.
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( Source : deccan chronicle )
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