CHENNAI: The fractures within the alliance over developments since the recent Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu echoed in the INDIA bloc meeting in New Delhi on Monday, with the DMK staying away, TVK yet to join the coalition, and the VCK delivering some uncomfortable truths to the Congress.
The MK Stalin-led DMK, one of the founding members of the bloc and the one that has a substantial number of MPs, stayed away due to strained ties with the Congress, while the TVK was not invited to the meeting, as it currently has no representation in either House of the Parliament.
Addressing the meeting, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan said the Congress’s approach during the recent elections had caused dissatisfaction among several constituents of the INDIA bloc. Not mincing words, he said the Congress’s electoral strategy in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and West Bengal weakened the parties that formed some of the strongest pillars of the alliance, including the DMK, Trinamool Congress, and the CPM.
"This is neither desirable nor beneficial to the larger cause of opposition unity. The Congress must, therefore, undertake a sincere reassessment of its approach and explore ways to further strengthen and consolidate the alliance," he said.
Considering that the alliance comprised both national and regional parties, differences of opinion were inevitable, he said. However, such differences should not be allowed to develop into divisions, he advised, and stressed that the responsibility for maintaining unity rested equally with national and regional parties.
The developments come amid increasing uncertainty over the future of the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance, the INDIA bloc’s Tamil Nadu version, following the Congress's decision to snap ties with the Dravidian major and join the TVK-led government. On Sunday, CPM State secretary P Shanmugam said the Secular Progressive Alliance no longer existed.
Responding to the remarks, CPI State secretary M Veerapandian said the Marxist leader's observation may have stemmed from the fact that several former DMK allies were either part of the TVK-led government or extending outside support to it.
"We will announce CPI’s position on the alliance after the party's executive committee meeting on June 9 and the administrative council meetings on June 10 and 11," he told reporters in Hosur.
Alliance sources said participation in the INDIA bloc meeting was restricted to parties represented in either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha. Asked whether the TVK would participate in future INDIA bloc meetings, Electricity Minister R Nirmalkumar said further consultations were required among alliance partners.