As I stood there at Rajaji Hall in Chennai from 6.30 in the morning to the end of the funeral of Jayalalithaa, I could not but wonder at the outpouring of grief I saw among the mourners. Wave upon wave of people beat their chests and wailed inconsolably. They showered petals and raised slogans extolling the difference she made to their lives. I must say Jayalalithaa was a matchless leader, a real Amma to the people.
To reach the pinnacle in the Machiavellian and male-dominated world of politics is no mean achievement. This required sheer grit from Jayalalithaa and she never swerved from her goal of serving the masses and making Tamil Nadu one of the premier states in terms of development indices.
Her charisma struck a chord in the hearts of the people and made her one of the most popular political leaders in the country. The sea of humanity that turned up at the Marina to pay their last respects was proof of the affection she evoked in the masses.
I knew Jayalalithaa personally for several years. She was one of the few who could be called an iconic leader. She was brave, bold and courageous and always in the forefront of protecting the interests of Tamil Nadu. The never-say-die attitude and uncompromising toughness that she displayed in the causes that she believed in enabled her to steadfastly tread her chosen path irrespective of any obstacles.
Her indomitable spirit was in evidence right to the very end. Just a day before she passed away, she was almost normal and planned to go home. Everyone hoped that she would lead an active political life again, but destiny snatched her away.
She gave voice to the voiceless and empowered the powerless. As someone said, Jayalalithaa lived and died for the welfare of the Tamil people, especially the downtrodden for whom she launched a slew of schemes. She was instrumental in ensuring legislative support for 69 per cent reservation in education and employment.
The Amma Canteens she started have become so popular that neighbouring states have emulated it. Of course, at times she was criticised for being populist but her welfare schemes will be remembered for long. She was in sync with the BJP on a broader ideological plane even if the AIADMK and BJP were on the opposite sides of an electoral battle.
Before the last Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, I spoke to her and made a case for an alliance between our two parties. She heard me out and promised to get back to me the next day. Subsequently, she informed me that her party after careful consideration had decided to go it alone as the winning margins were likely to be narrow due to the anti-incumbency factor. And also she thought an alliance between the AIADMK and the BJP might give a handle to her political rivals to create a fear psychosis among the people. That was the pragmatic side of her politics.
However, she had assured me she liked the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and would extend support to the NDA on larger national issues. She lived up to her word on many occasions such as when the GST Bill was passed in Parliament.
But when it came to issues of concern to Tamil Nadu — be it the Tamil fishermen’s issue or the Cauvery waters dispute — she would not give an inch. I had personal and firsthand experience of how she pursued development-related issues like the Chennai Metro Rail, heritage cities, smart cities, housing for all and other major projects dealt with by my ministry. Incidentally, I was involved in the last two public functions she graced. One was the foundation ceremony for the Thiruvottiyur metro extension in her constituency on July 23 this year; the other was the inauguration of the Chinnamalai Metro Line on September 20.
As she was suffering from fever, she said she preferred to participate through a video- conference from her place.
She used to openly say that she considers me a friend of Tamil Nadu in the Central government. As the BJP general secretary in 1998 and as president of the BJP in 2004, I used to interact with her a lot and visited her at her Poes Garden residence. During seat-sharing negotiations, she used to be very firm and at the same time logical. On occasions, she used to accommodate my party’s wishes.
When I insisted that Rangarajan Kumaramangalam be given a seat from Salem, she curtly told me he had no chance of winning but finally agreed to accommodate him from Tiruchy. Whenever I visited her, she was very affectionate and used to converse with me in chaste Telugu.
She tenaciously fought her rivals within and outside the party. She encountered many situations when her adversaries tried to insult, sideline or ignore her after the demise of MGR. Displaying the fighting spirit of a battle-hardened veteran, she fought back with courage and conviction.
The fact that people prayed for days together in temples, churches and mosques for her well-being shows the unparalleled popularity she enjoyed. She used to call herself as ‘anbu sahodari’ (dear sister) but her followers started calling her ‘Amma’ (mother). She was a real revolutionary leader and deserved the title of Puratchi Thalaivi. As my friend Gurumurthy has written, ‘na bhooto na bhavishyati’ (neither in the past nor in the future), I cherish my memories of her.
M Venkaaiah Naidu is the Vice President of India
(This article was written by him on December 8th, 2016, when he was the Union Minister for Urban Development and Information & Broadcasting)