Politics And The Fine Art Of Embarrassing Others
Walkouts marked the ongoing Assembly session though at times the reasons cited were rather dicey.
The connotation to the phrase ‘Atlas Shrugged,’ which is actually the title of a novel by Ayn Rand, is that the mythical titan Atlas, who painstakingly carries the universe on his shoulder, just shrugged at one occasion, which in modern idiom could mean the skies came crashing down. Outside the realm of myths and novels, the world saw a titan carrying the political party, AIADMK, on his shoulders, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, shrugging once at Hotel ITC Grand Chola recently. Seated on the stage of a press conference, whose backdrop was changed thrice, he kept mum throughout the proceedings that saw the visitor from New Delhi, Union home minister, Amit Shah announcing an alliance between the BJP and AIADMK.
Well, that was one of the many bizarre events that unfolded in the political arena of Tamil Nadu in the last 10 days causing tremors in the subsequent days. Otherwise, the season of legislative engagements saw the hurling of charges and counter charges outside the Assembly Hall. Of course the main opposition party had a point when they said that they were not allowed to raise issues as they liked. So they had to walk out of the House and pour their hearts out to the waiting media corps, where they did not face the risk of their words getting expunged. What they wanted to say and when there were different matters the Speaker M. Appavu would explain to justify his ruling for not giving them a free run.
Whatever it was, walkouts marked the ongoing Assembly session though at times the reasons cited were rather dicey. For example, when Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced the setting up of a committee under retired judge Kurian Joseph to study Centre-States relationship, which was a revival of the DMK’s good old demand for State autonomy, the BJP said that it went against its principles. But the AIADMK too was not there to support the stand though it cannot be seen explicitly as not supporting the demand because C.N. Annadurai, whose name the party still bears, was actually demanding a Dravida Nadu earlier.
So, making use of the ruse that their call attention motions against three sitting state ministers were not allowed, the AIADMK left the House en masse, avoiding the embarrassment of being caught seeing eye to eye with the ruling party. Since the national media came down with all guns blazing against the very idea of state autonomy, which was branded as nothing less than secessionism, the AIADMK, by being not there to support the DMK’s move, saved the embarrassment of being blamed to be not in sync with the BJP’s views.
In fact, contemporary politics in the State is more about causing embarrassments. Palaniswami’s meaningful silence in the presence of Amit Shah actually caused embarrassment to many leaders down the party hierarchy, who later on started blabbering on their own – on the issue of coalition government – causing embarrassment to Palaniswami himself. So Palaniswami had to embarrass others by telling them not to open their mouths to the media, including those from the YouTube channels, without his permission. If Palaniswami kept mum when Amit Shah made his declaration of the revival of an old alliance in State, it was because he felt embarrassed over the resurrection of a ghost he wanted to bury.
With neither Amit Shah nor Palaniswami clearing the doubts that rose in the minds of all, including media persons, around, the newly elected State BJP president, Nainar Nagenthran faced a fusillade of probing questions on the alliance, particularly if it would lead to sharing of power if at all the coalition romps home in the 2026 Assembly polls. Nagenthran, who is as new to the president’s post as the newly formed alliance, too was embarrassed because he did not have the answers. He was so embarrassed that instead of saying ‘we’ll see when the time comes,’ he threw up his hands and said that he did not know what transpired between Amit Shah and Palaniswami, which actually should be a reason for collective embarrassment of the State level BJP leaders.
Anyway they took it in their stride, something which the DMK top brass could do when a video clip of their senior leader and Minister K Ponmudi surfaced a few days after he made a speech at a hall meeting organized by an outfit that is part of the Dravidian family. A remark that derogated women and caused hurt to some acolytes of the Hindu religion caused more embarrassment to the DMK’s women’s wing head and deputy general secretary Kanimozhi Karunanidhi. So she blasted the party senior on X. Though it is common for Ponmudi to make statements that his detractors would pounce upon after editing the video and making it go viral, this time party chief M K Stalin pounced on him and took away the party post he held.
But the brigade that objected to his remarks was not satisfied, it wanted him to be removed from the Ministerial post, too, which of course the party leadership ignored. It was also one of reasons for the AIADMK to stage walkouts from the Assembly. But the real embarrassment for the DMK and government came from the Madras High Court, which wanted a criminal case to be filed against the Minister. If the police failed, Justice N Anand Venkatesh said he would initiate suo motu proceedings.
