M K Stalin's Gowdas-woo bid seen in Hosur visit today

Krishnagiri: Ahead of the elections, Stalin’s visit to Hosur in Krishnagiri district for a marriage function held in a Gowda family is viewed as the party leader’s attempt to get the support of that community for the DMK in the coming Lok Sabha polls.

Stalin and other DMK leaders including his sister Kanimozhi would be here on Sunday for the marriage function, which is to take place in the family of DMK’s Thally MLA Y. Prakash.

A few others see this event as part of Stalin’s hard work for the elections, though local DMK cadre here say the visit is purely non-political.

To justify their claim, political observers say that the Krishnagiri parliament constituency has six assembly segments, with majority of voters belonging to the Vanniar, Vellala and Kannada-speaking Gowda community.

In view of this, the local DMK unit has successfully roped-in D. Mathialagan, from the Vellala Gounder community, and was also district leader for the Rajani Makkal Mandram. He and his supporters joined the DMK on Friday, at Chennai.

However, political observers here are of the opinion that Stalin should also focus on taking into the party’s fold local leaders who have been punished by him, as in the case of N.S. Madeshwaran.

They are of the opinion that Stalin should reconsider his earlier decision and revoke the punishment given to them. If not, the DMK may lose people having good experience in electioneering work.

In Madeshwaran’s case, also former vice-chairman of Hosur municipality, he was suspended from the DMK following a lower court judgment that sentenced him to undergo imprisonment on land grab charges.

He was, however, later acquitted of all charges by the additional district session court, which found the case against him as invalid and framed with malafide intent to portray him in bad light.