Chennai: Notwithstanding Dr Subramanian Swamy’s assertion that BJP president Amit Shah would keep away from the DMK’s mega show at Chennai gathering several national leaders to commemorate the party’s late patriarch M Karunanidhi, it now appears the saffron strongman will be here on August 30.
“We printed the invitation cards only after getting his (Shah) nod. He had readily agreed to attend the meeting when Kanimozhi asked him and once again confirmed participation when T R Baalu presented the invitation to him. And we are told that once he accepts an invitation, he will not go back on his word; so we are confident he will come”, said a senior DMK parliamentarian, requesting anonymity.
“Besides, this meeting is only for paying our respects to Kalaignar; it has very little to do with any politics”, he said, adding, “Even in the BJP, not many take Swamy seriously”.
The impressive four-page invitation card for the event that the DMK has named, ‘The Southern Sun—Meeting of National Political Leaders’, has former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda leading an impressive list of leaders from across the country. Amit Shah and Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad share the top space, just below Gowda, in the list of 13 national leaders in the invite.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Bihar CM and JD (U) leader Nitish Kumar, Andhra Pradesh CM and TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy, AAP convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Puducherry CM V Narayanasamy, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien and IUML chairman Kader Mohideen complete the impressive lineup of national leaders in the DMK invite.
Party general secretary K Anbazhagan, working president M K Stalin and principal secretary Durai Murugan will be on the dais too. The party started distributing the invitations on Friday even as the mainstream newsrooms — as much as the ever-active social media and also the political circles — were still discussing excitedly the tweet posted earlier in the day by former Union Minister and BJP's Rajya Sabha member Dr Subramanian Swamy, which said: 'Happy to learn that Party President Amit Shah has decided not to attend the DMK meet'.
Just the previous day, there was the surprising news from Delhi, quoting DMK Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi, saying that Shah had accepted her party’s invitation for the Aug 30 event in Chennai.
Dr Swamy’s tweet, predictably, received huge response with both the BJP and DMK loyalists expressing happiness that Shah would not attend the Karunanidhi commemoration. "If this is true, there are many more cadres in our party than with you who would be happy", shot back a DMK supporter in response to some BJP tweets welcoming the Swamy tweet.
Just this response from the cadres of both these parties would suffice to show their mutual dislike and must warn their leaders of the negative repercussions should they attempt to forge alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha election, according to political observers. Political prudence could get them together post-poll as Stalin’s DMK is expected to emerge as ‘king-maker’ should the BJP fall short of a clear majority.
BJP chief participation will not affect DMK-Congress alliance: TNCC chief
BJP national chief Amit Shah’s participation in the DMK’s meeting will not affect the DMK-Congress alliance, TNCC chief Su. Thirunavukkarasar has claimed.
“Congress is not concerned about Amit Shah attending Karunanidhi’s memorial meeting. His participation will not affect our ties with the DMK,” Mr Thirunavukkarasar said on Saturday. The DMK, he asserted, has invited leaders of several political parties and even those who are not allies of the Dravidian party, to take part in the Aug. 30 meeting.
