Kerala & Tamil Nadu Elections

The Good

a. DMK the corrupt family dynasty party of the Karunanidhi has been dealt a severe blow. Karunanidhi’s advanced age, incompetent and corrupt second tier leadership and infighting in the family are now casting long shadows. The sun is about to finally set for DMK. Couldn’t have happened sooner. Couldn’t have happened more definitively. Couldn’t have happened to a more miserable family.
b. The Tamil voter’s sensibility is commendable. DMK saw the writing on the wall and started to distribute money and goods to bribe the voters in creative ways to hide it from the EC. They got away with it. In urban areas DMK got wiped out. In rural areas, it would seem that people took money and yet voted against DMK. I suppose that some of that black money from Switzerland is back with people of TN. More power to them!

c. AIADMK spectacular comeback was also possible because of Jayalalitha’s softening stances to form smart alliance in order to avoid splitting of the anti DMK votes. She went against her nature and made compromises with smaller players and reaped benefits. I hope that she continues on that road of compromise and all inclusive administration.

d. It was the finest hour for the Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, the most popular CPM leader who gave the congress led UDF run for their money in the close Kerala election.

e. Except for re-polling in five assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu and two in Kerala because of the malfunctioning of the EVMs and minor skirmishes the election was by and large very peaceful with heavy voter turnout.

The Bad

f. Though Jayalalitha reached out to the people by picking up issues like rampant corruption, poor road conditions, power cuts and alleged DMK goondaism, she quickly initiated DMK like tricks to win people’s hearts and announced a slew of freebies like mixer, grinder and fans. She needs to realize that it is performance not freebies which will win her hearts, minds and the next term.

g. Right after winning the elections with a massive mandate, Jayalalitha fired a salvo at the SriLankan President Rajapaksa when she said that he must be tried for war crimes before the International Court of Law. She has to remember that AIADMK is a regional party and needs to first focus on the pressing state issues. Though Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (the Liberation Tigers party) lost in all the 10 constituencies it fielded candidates proves that the plight of the Lankan Tamils is not high in the list of priorities of the Tamil Nadu people, but still JJ Amma chose to make a statement in her very first address after winning the elections. Moreover, she may have taught herself the art of politics in TN but has little idea of international politics. The central govt. is trying its best to limit Chinese influence in Sri Lanka (eg. The Hambantota port). Provocative statements against the SL PM does the nation more harm to Indian interests that it does good to the SL Tamils. In this regards she needs to take lessons from Nitish Kumar who has kept quiet and has been solving one problem after another.

h. The communism in Kerala still seems to be a viable option and an alternative. The keralites seem content with the status co and do not wish to embrace development and progress. They almost elected a communist government. If they had, they would be the only piece of real estate in the world governed by an elected communist government!

The Ugly

i. J. Jayalalitha too succumbed to the vote bank politics ploy of the DMK and Congress by promising trips to Bethlehem for Christians just like the Muslims go for the Haj Pilgrimage if voted to power. Now that would become precedence for other Christian dominated states like Kerala to follow. These are tricks used by pseudo-secularists and not by a woman who was brave enough to take on the religious conversions in her state.

j. The BJP, the opposition conservative nationalist party failed to open an account yet again in spite of high hopes in some four to five constituencies this election. The religious parties like the Muslim League and the Kerala Congress of the Kerala Christians formed alliances to defeat the BJP candidates.The Congress and allies won maximum seats in Muslim-dominated Mallapuram and Christian belts Ernakulam and Kottayam. The CPM and allies won in Kannur, Kozhikode, Kollam, Palakkad, Alappuzha and Thiruvananthapuram, which all have significant Hindu concentration. This clearly demonstrates that the secular Hindus voted for the CPM whereas the communal Muslims and the Christians voted for their religious communities. The voting pattern displayed a communal polarization across the state, with Christians and Muslims consolidating behind Congress-led UDF and the Hindu areas going with the CPM-led LDF. This reflects poorly on Hindus and Christians. By going with communists, the Hindus are blatantly abandoning their interests and empowering those who hate their faith. One of the many examples of that is the blatant misuse of Hindu temple funds by the commies for their own nefarious purposes. By aligning with the Muslims, the Christians are exhibiting myopia. They have forgotten the Madani inspired fundamentalists who chopped the hands of the Christian professor not too long ago! If they cannot use common sense and see who will take care of their interests then at least listen to Pope Benedict who has spoken clearly against Islamic fundamentalism. Their hatred for Hindus is clouding their judgment and they are creating a monster who is SURE to bite them in near future.