ELECTIONS '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ARCHIVES

Jain Commission's final report pushes along political realignment in TN

N Sathiya Moorthy in Madras

Surprising as it may seem, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has come out with a muted reaction to the Jain Commission reportedly 'exonerating' it in its final report on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination. Absent in the published accounts of the party's reaction is the feeling of hurt and rancour, vehemence and revenge that the Dravidian party would have been expected to pour out under the circumstances.

"I have seen brickbats and bouquets in my six decades of public life. I consider them as one, and continue my political journey," party supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has been quoted as saying.

What's even more surprising is Karunanidhi's 'reaction-less reaction' on the Congress, which had pulled down the United Front government alleging the DMK's complicity in the assassination, on the strength of the interim report of the Jain Commission. "I will be happy if those who have unnecessarily maligned the DMK and made baseless charges against the party understand the truth," was his sober statement on the question.

Karunanidhi has also been showering fulsome praise and gratitude on his Tamil Maanila Congress ally, for standing steadfast by the DMK in its hour of crisis. "At a time when everyone was demanding the dismissal of the DMK government, he has taken a bold stand against all such demands," he has been telling friends about TMC leader G K Moopanar. And ignoring for the moment. the ambiguous stand the TMC had taken at one stage in the political crisis over the Jain interim report, the DMK leadership is referring to Moopanar's 'wait-and-watch approach' with respect.

For his part, Moopanar too has been reacting positively to the Commission's final report -- or the 'leaked out' portions, to be precise. "I am not surprised," he said about the final report exonerating the DMK. He had known the contents of the final report for about 20 days now, and said "more explosive material" is in store when the report is officially published.

Karunanidhi's elation on Moopanar's assertion about the TMC continuing in the United Front, and Moopanar's very own defence of the state government on the Coimbatore blasts investigations -- there was laxity before the blasts, but not after, he has said -- have caused eyebrows to be raised. Though the cadres of the two parties have been suspicious of each other in the post-poll days in particular, the leaders have now come around to acknowledging the continuance of the alliance.

Added to this is the evolving Congress stand. First, Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee raised the question of Union ministers from Tamil Nadu talking about the dismissal of the state government in the Rajya Sabha. More importantly, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has since announced the decision not to give Rajya Sabha berths to those who have lost the Lok Sabha election.

Included in this list will be former Union minister Arjun Singh -- who is alleged to be the architect behind the leakage of the Jain Commission's interim report, that questioned the DMK's credibility and rocked the UF boat. This is considered to be the Congress's indirect acknowledgement of the party's unwelcome role in unseating the United Front regime, using the DMK as an excuse.

With Sonia Gandhi sort of leaving the choice of merger with the Congress to the TMC itself at her maiden press meet at Delhi, indications are that Moopanar will use his good offices to bring both the Congress and the DMK together on the same political plane. Apart from serving other political purposes for the persons involved, such a middle course will also show the TMC to be a honest broker between the two.

Tell us what you think of this report