1 year: Roller-coaster ride for AIADMK government

Chennai: AIADMK, which wrote itself into history when it retained power in the summer of 2016 bunking a three-decade old trend led by charismatic J. Jayalalithaa, completes one year in office on Monday and it seems to have more woes and problems than achievements to flaunt.

Prime uniqueness of the regime is that it has seen three chief ministers  — J. Jayalalithaa, O. Panneerselvam and Edappadi K. Palanisami — for the first time in the history of the AIADMK. The government led by Mr Palanisami, which was sworn in after the hopes of late Jayalalithaa’s aide V.K. Sasikala to rule from the Fort St George came crashing down after the Supreme Court convicted her in disproportionate assets case, seems to be uncomfortable and unstable due to the split in the ruling party.

Political instability that erupted when Jayalalithaa was wheeled into Apollo Hospitals on the night of September 22, 2016, only multiplied after her demise on December 5, 2016, leading to a split in the AIADMK and their rivalry reaching the doors of the Election Commission in New Delhi. The enthusiasm and joy in the AIADMK camp after it achieved a historic feat of returning to power after its founder M. G. Ramachandran gave way to sadness and political instability within four months.

Both factions - one led by former chief minister O. Panneerselvam and the other headed by incumbent Edappadi Palanisami — have filed a petition in the EC claiming that they are the “original AIADMK” and they should be allotted the magical “two Leaves” symbol.

The factional fight led to the EC freezing the symbol and allotting separate symbol for both factions in the Dr R K Nagar by-polls, which was cancelled due to large-scale violations of model code of conduct.

The split in the AIADMK and frequent changing of chief ministers led to dampness in administration and caused several embarrassment to the government starting with the Marina revolt, confinement of MLAs at a resort in Kuvathur, the flood of money recovered during the R K Nagar polls and few industries allegedly moving out of the state due to demands for “huge sums” as bribe.

“People who are at the helm are very new when it comes to handling responsibilities. Though they were ministers, then Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa and her team of officers did much of the work. And the incumbent Chief Minister is more interested in saving his seat than looking after administration. He is trying to keep his position intact and there is no visible administration,” political analyst Ravindran Duraisamy told Deccan Chronicle.

And the party and the government suffered another embarrassment when Delhi police arrested deputy general secretary T. T. V. Dhinakaran for allegedly trying to bribe an Election Commission official to get a favourable order for his faction in the two leaves symbol case.

With his government surviving on a wafer-thin majority, Chief Minister Edappadi Palanisami is reluctant on convening the Assembly and political observers say inefficiency has creeped into every sector of the administration. Sensing political opportunity, the Opposition parties led by leader of Opposition in the Assembly M. K Stalin have been putting the government on the mat on every issue - be it Neet, hydrocarbon extraction, farmers’ issue, drought and ineptness of government in handling crisis situation.

DMK Rajya Sabha MP T. K. S. Elangovan says the AIADMK Government is “afraid of facing” the Assembly due to its vulnerable position. “There is no governance in Tamil Nadu. In the year that has passed, three months were spent in Apollo Hospitals and the rest was devoted to power struggle. The chief minister and the ministers seem to be worried more about the party than the people of Tamil Nadu. They are interested only in continuing in power,” Mr Elangovan said.

However, VCK general secretary and writer Ravikumar says the “suffocating atmosphere” of the Jayalalithaa administration has given way for ministers to function and take decisions independently. He also says there is space for people to protest against the government on various issues in the Edappadi Palanisami regime.

“People are able to at least show their dissent and see the way ministers like (K.A.) Sengottaiyan are functioning. He has brought good changes in the school education system and this would not have happened under Jayalalithaa administration,” Mr Ravikumar said.

On the positive side, the government did act on some of its election promises by closing down in all 1,000 Tasmac shops and implementing some welfare schemes announced by late chief minister Jayalalithaa. The AIADMK government also came for appreciation for its work after Cyclone Vardah hit the Chennai Coast in December last year.