Chennai: The DMK on Friday restored the position of secretary, public relations (which is the party’s title for media spokesman) to Rajya Sabha member TKS Elangovan, the erudite and affable ‘friend’ of the Fourth Estate in an otherwise media-unfriendly Dravidian party.
TKS was stripped of this same job in mid-October reportedly as punishment for telling a TV channel that Sonia Gandhi would unveil the late Karunanidhi’s statue at Chennai on November 15. Sources said Stalin was furious at Elangovan for making the announcement which should have been his (Stalin’s) prerogative.
The DMK has also rewarded new entrant Thanga Tamilselvan--an AIADMK ex-MLA who had joined hands with ‘rebel’ TTV Dhinakaran and migrated to the DMK from the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam in June--with the post of kozhgai parappu seyalalar, propaganda secretary. He will share the burden of this position along with from Union Minister A Raja and ‘Trichy’ Siva, both of them MPs already functioning as the party’s propaganda secretaries.
Another AIADMK ex-legislator V P Kalairajan, who crossed over to the DMK in March this year, has now been gifted with the post of joint-secretary of the literary wing. ‘Kalai’ had been close to Sasikala Natarajan and was a fish out of waters when Chinnamma went jail in Bengaluru in the disproportionate wealth case. Sources say he was not happy even after the migration to the DMK but now that he has got a post in the party, however insignificant it might be, ‘Kalai’ could replace the sulk on his face with a smile.
Not wanting to lose an opportunity to take a dig at the DMK and its chief Stalin, senior AIADMK minister D Jayakumar told reporters in Chennai that he was saddened by the DMK “becoming so barren (panjam) that it must invite our party members and give them positions”. He then grabbed a ‘topical’ simile to liken the DMK as an ‘AIADMK-occupied’ party just like the Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, PoK.
“Besides, members of the DMK are upset that they are being ignored despite having slogged for the party whereas newcomers from the AIADMK are getting all the positions”, Jayakumar drilled in the ridiculing, with his signature smile. He could also be referring to another ex-AIADMK strongman P K Sekar Babu, who quit Amma’s party in January 2011 and is now the DMK’s East Chennai district secretary. And there are other Dravidian stalwarts in prominent positions in the DMK after migration from the AIADMK in the last one decade-KKSSR Ramachandran, E V Velu, Anita Radhakrishnan, Karuppusamy Pandian, et cetera.
Predictably, Thanga Tamilselvan got angry at Jayakumar’s snide remarks, which he said did not behove his position as a Minister. “I have received calls from several DMK members from all over the state and they all expressed happiness at my getting this post. DMK leader Thalapathi only rewards those who work hard for the party”, said Tamilselvan, who has been TTV’s close lieutenant till recently.
