PUDUCHERRY: Puducherry BJP legislators and independent MLAs roping in the son of a lottery baron who is currently under the Enforcement Directorate radar as chief guest for a recent event in Puducherry has sparked off political concerns in Puducherry.
Jose Charles Martin, the son of Coimbatore-based businessman Santiago Martin aka “lottery king” participated as Chief Guest at an event hosted by Kamaraj Nagar BJP MLA, A. John Kumar to felicitate Class 10 and 12 toppers residing in the constituency.
Two other BJP MLAs-Vivilian Richards (son of John Kumar) and P.M.L. Kalyanasundaram and three Independents supporting the party in the Assembly- M. Sivasankar, P. Angalane and Gollapalli Srinivas Ashok also participated.
The holding of such an event in which three legislators, all of them turncoats, and the Independents after their open rebellion following BJP’s defeat in Puducherry Lok Sabha seat and also against the AINRC-BJP government at various times (both in the Assembly and outside) has set the tone for political concerns.
Two of these MLAs have been aspiring for ministerial berths and have been pushing for it even at Delhi, while the other four have been aspiring for chairman posts in quasi-government bodies, but with little success.
With Assembly elections slightly over a year away, the MLAs do not want to remain dependent on the party for the fulfilment of their aspirations and are exploring independent political avenues. One legislator hinted that switching to other established parties, like the Congress or Dravidian parties, would not benefit them as senior leaders would again dominate key positions, once the party comes to power.
Amidst reports of Martin nurturing political ambitions and set to enter the political arena, the MLAs see this as an opportunity. This is indicative of Charles distributing gift boxes pasted with his photograph to the successful students in the Kamaraj Nagar event and Richards going to the extent of offering the Kamaraj Nagar Assembly seat to Charles to contest in the next Assembly polls.
Speculation is rife on the formation of a new political outfit, starting with a trust focused on social service and subsequently evolving into a party. “If they succeed in winning a few seats, they will be in a position to bargain for ministerial and other positions with the political party that gets majority seats,” said a political observer.
“Money has been playing a key role in winning elections despite all curbs by the Election Commission and this have given confidence to succeed," said a political observer.
The development is also watched closely by BJP ally AINRC, Congress and other political parties, as they also see a threat from ambitious party men who may see this as a new opportunity to switch over to gain power and position.
So far BJP has not reacted to the development, while PPCC President V Vaithilingam has said that this new group is a “B” team of the BJP and a new strategy to capture full power in the UT.