TIRUCHY: AIADMK cadres in the central region are concerned that no functionary from this belt has found a place in the 11-member steering committee of the party created on Wednesday. Cadres pointed out that the central districts have little or no representation in any top posts in the ruling party, expressing concern as to how this might affect the AIADMK’s prospects in the upcoming Assembly elections in the State.
Several political heavyweights have emerged from the central region, which includes Ariyalur, Perambalur, Tiruchy, Karur and Pudukkottai districts. It has enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with the Dravidian parties.
Late DMK chief M Karunanidhi made his electoral debut from Kulithalai near Tiruchy and always preferred to conduct the party’s state-level conferences in Tiruchy. His rival and late chief minister J Jayalalitha also placed a great deal of importance on the region, even contesting and winning from the Srirangam Assembly seat in 2011.
Its central location in the state made Tiruchy politically vibrant and the region has hosted many historic events and conferences. But cadres fear it might be disappearing from the AIADMK’s political map going by recent developments.
While other regions such as Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai have got representations in the party’s steering committee, the Tiruchy region has got none despite 24 assembly segments being located in the central districts, 15 seats of which were won by the AIADMK in the 2016 elections.
Though several well-known faces in the party hail from the region, including Ministers Vellamandi N Natarajan, S Valarmathi, C Vijayabaskar, M R Vijayabaskar, chief government whip Thamarai S Rajendran, none has made it to the steering committee or the party’s other top posts.
The only member of the steering committee who hails from near the region is Minister R Kamaraj from Tiruvarur. Party’s deputy coordinator and Rajya Sabha MP R Vaithilingam, from Thanjavur, is the highest ranked office-bearer from near the region.
The AIADMK cadres wondered how the aspirations, interests and problems of Tiruchy and its surrounding districts could be represented in the party.
Causing more concern to the AIADMK workers is that their rival party, the DMK, recently elevated former minister K N Nehru, from Tiruchy, as the principal secretary of the party. Similarly, former union minister A Raja, from Perambalur, has recently been made the party’s deputy general secretary.
The cadres are of the view that while the DMK is giving importance to the central region, their party seems to be falling behind. They fear this may have consequences at the polls.
A senior AIADMK functionary from Tiruchy said that the party saw a setback in the district in the recent rural local body elections. “In order to regain strength here, the district has to be given importance by the party high command. But there is no representation from this entire region in the party’s vital affairs.”