Piggyback riding makes Congress, BJP irrelevant in Tamil Nadu

Chennai: Almost in all elections since 1967 when Congress lost power to the then fledgling Dravidian party, DMK, national parties — Congress and BJP — have rendered themselves irrelevant in Dravidian politics in Tamil Nadu.  

Riding piggyback on one or the other Dravidian majors — AIADMK, DMK — they have managed to get a few seats, so much so that leaders of both parties repeatedly ridiculed them even dubbing them as political parasites. Since then, Congress, barring twice, has always contested the Assembly elections in an alliance with a Dravidian party.

The only time Congress faced the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu alone after it lost power to DMK was in 1977 in the aftermath of the Emergency and in 1989, when its leader G.K. Moopanar led the party to win just 29 seats. 

The BJP’s performance is neither impressive as the party has been left to fend for itself in the past few elections, especially after AIADMK-BJP alliance fell apart in 2004.

The BJP opened its account in the Tamil Nadu Assembly in 2001 by winning four seats in an alliance with DMK. It drew a blank in every Lok Sabha and Assembly election that were held till 2014 when it bagged one seat that too in an alliance with DMDK, PMK, IJK and other smaller outfits.

This time around, its erstwhile partners DMDK and PMK ditched the national party to pursue their political career, leaving the BJP to cobble up a coalition of lesser-known parties who have no presence in most parts of the state.

Political analysts say Congress’s case is a classic example of contradiction. While it harps on the need to strengthen the party in order to bring in the “golden Kamaraj rule”, as the election approaches it desperately looks for an alliance with Dravidian majors.

They said the real strength of Congress was visible during 2014 election when it became a political untouchable even in Tamil Nadu. Even the DMK, which shared power at the Centre in a coalition government led by the party, did not take Congress into its fold.

Political commentator Sumanth C. Raman terms the current situation where national parties are marginal players “unfortunate” and wants them to form alliances with smaller parties and build their base if they want to really sustain as a political force to reckon with.

“For the past few decades, the national parties have been depending on regional parties for running the government at the Centre. So, these Dravidian parties made sure the national parties do not pose a challenge for them in the state. The classic example is the UPA government which was dependent on support from DMK. The DMK made sure Congress does not get strengthened in the state,” he said.

If the national parties want to remain relevant, they need to chart their course independently, but if they continue to piggyback on Dravidian majors, they would continue to be irrelevant, he said.

Several Congress leaders have switched loyalties to Dravidian parties, with S. R. Balasubramaniam being the latest to cross over.   Balasubramaniam, a long-time Congressman, quit Tamil Maanila Congress accusing G.K. Vasan of ‘unilaterally’ deciding to align with  DMDK-PWA Alliance.

Congressmen admit in private that the “character of Congress has been lost” in Tamil Nadu where the party has to rely on regional parties to win seats in elections.