CHENNAI: A statement by DMK women’s wing secretary K Kanimozhi about her wing’s ‘exclusive right’ to enrol young women members into the party has sparked speculation about a possible friction between the Lok Sabha member and her nephew Udhayanidhi Stalin.
The Stalin scion and youth wing secretary of the party just hours after his aunt’s assertion launched an enrollment drive in Coimbatore on Sunday in which nearly 2,000 young women, most of them aged below 30, were inducted into the party, said sources.
The drive was ostensibly carried out as per the instructions of party president and Chief Minister MK Stalin, sources said. DMK functionaries, who are privy to the internal affairs of the party, said, “In 2019, a few district youth wing functionaries tried to establish a youth women wing under the leadership of Udhayanidhi Stalin. It was also widely believed that the move had the blessings of the leadership.
But some people said Kanimozhi was not happy as calling the new wing as youth women wing may lead to workers and functionaries of the existing women’s wing being identified as members of ‘aged women’s wing’. The discord, which died down after the plan was dropped, has returned to haunt the party with this new drive, DMK sources said.
While some party sources dismiss it as just an inner-party competition between two wings to boost their membership, others said that though the CM’s half-sister kept pushing the functionaries of her unit to enrol as many members as possible, the cadres and functionaries took a cue from the power centres within the party. It’s Udhayanidhi who enjoys stronger leadership support and Kanimozhi cannot stop him from venturing into her turf, they said.
Political observer and veteran journalist Tharasu Shyam said, “Every party needs infusion of young blood. The political future of the heads of the youth wing and the women’s wing will be based on the ideological training they give to these members. Merely adding numbers to their wings won’t help them."