The high-voltage visit of Delhi Chief Minister Aravind Kejriwal to meet Kamal Haasan in Chennai and the actor later committing himself to a 100-day deadline to launch his political party has added spice to the interesting drama playing out in Tamil Nadu. Kejriwal hoped to be the early bird looking to catch the anti-corruption worm, as much as Haasan sought to be faster off the blocks than friend and competitor Rajinikanth in his political launch.
Not to be left behind, Rajini promptly tweeted his praise for PM Narendra Modi’s cleanliness drive, indicating he was very much a player in the matrix. While the enigmatic Rajini with a fairly large fan following was the first big time actor to spot a political opportunity after the demise of AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa, he is yet to explicitly time his entry.
The launch of both the blockbusters is predicated on the supposed disintegration of the ruling party, which is facing a crisis from within as rebel leader T T V Dhinakaran is determined on pulling the rug from under the feet of CM Edappadi K Palaniswami. The chief minister has tenaciously held the party together for so long and convened a general council meeting, which was attended by as many as 98 per cent of all office bearers appointed by Jaya—from the grassroots right up to the apex level.
And Speaker P Dhanapal’s decision to disqualify 18 rebel MLAs, which would possibly give Palaniswami an easy majority in the Assembly, is under legal challenge. The latest ingredient in the pot is forest minister Dindigul C Sreenivaasan’s claim that he lied about Jaya’s health status when she was hospitalised.
Anti-corruption might be an interesting launch platform, but remember Kejriwal too had to succumb to the pressures of realpolitik.
Those who refuse to bend like Puducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi face the risk of a defamation suit from their own government. Also, it is not easy to work with Kejriwal, if Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s experience is anything to go by.