Kindling the latent anger among farmers was the Centre’s somersault on setting up the Cauvery Management Board (CMB), an institutional mechanism mandated by the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal to apportion the waters among the riparian states.
Frustration and the feeling of being wronged forced them to come to the streets and the political class could not afford to stay away. While perennial fighters such as MDMK general secretary Vaiko, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi chief Thirumavalavan and some Left leaders were in the forefront, it was an opportunity not to be missed by the likes of Stalin and G K Vasan. And, last week’s 48-hour rail blockade saw the ryots court arrest in thousands. They cooked food and planted seedlings on the tracks while at a few places some even put up tents. After a disappointing Assembly polls and an insipid performance in the budget session, the DMK was looking for something to latch on sans any aggressive push.
“Stalin is not known for agitational politics but, there is a compulsion for him to redeem his image and position himself as a counter to CM and AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa. Also, it provided an occasion not only for the DMK but for all the opposition parties as a springboard for local body elections expected sometime later,” said professor Ramu Manivannan of Madras University.
Not to be undone, DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi’s daughter and Rajya Sabha MP, Kanimozhi, led a delegation of party MPs to President Pranab Mukherjee in Delhi. Even the docile Congress observed a protest fast last week in Tiruchy with the newly-appointed TNCC chief S Thirunavukkarasan bringing party veterans such as former Union Minister P Chidambaram on board. Congress’ strategy was to ‘Target Modi but spare Karnataka’.
The People Welfare Alliance was also not lagging behind. A PWA delegation called on President Mukherjee and submitted a memorandum.