CHENNAI: Every top functionary of the DMK will descend on the party headquarters on Monday to conduct a post-mortem of the party’s dismal performance in the Lok Sabha election, and find the way forward.
But party patriarch M Karunanidhi’s birthday is the next day, and this seems set to turn a weapon of mass distraction from the DMK’s woes. The veteran leader, who turns 91 on Tuesday, however asked partymen to ‘self-introspect’ on what had caused the defeat, and what their role had been in it.
On the eve of the DMK’s high-level committee meeting, the area around Karunanidhi’s residence in the posh Gopalapuram area wore a festive look. Huge flex hoardings flattering him in some term or the other, stood under the festoons and the pandal right outside his house. There was, however, only one poster, tucked on a wall behind a banner, that spoke of the hope of the party’s resurgence.
While none of the preparations at either Gopalapuram or Anna Arivalayam betrayed anything but Karunanidhi’s birthday, the man himself touched on the topic in his birthday message to cadre. “I had said I didn’t want any celebration. But I had been persuaded otherwise by party general secretary Perasiriyar (nickname for K Anbazhagan) and treasurer (MK) Stalin. Perasiriyar came to my house and would not leave till I agreed for the celebration,” he said.
“Our party has faced huge defeat in the recent Lok Sabha election. We have faced such defeat before and have gone on to capture victory again. A lot has been said by many by way of an explanation for our party’s defeat. Party functionaries not carrying out their duties or their activities inviting the wrath of the people are among the reasons that have been proffered,” said Karunandhi.
“I ask each of our comrades to self-introspect over where we stand, what we are doing and understand how we need to act and think to stay in line with the party’s values and ideologies,” he added.
But this topic is not likely to take up too much time at Monday’s meetings, if the resolutions passed recently by the DMK’s Adi Dravidar wing are anything to go by.