Mushrooming parties wandering like political orphans: Stalin

CHENNAI: In a veiled dig at fledgling political parties and their leaders nurturing chief ministerial ambitions, Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday said that political parties mushrooming out of nowhere have become political orphans.

Speaking at a function in Coimbatore in which several thousand members from various other parties joined the ruling DMK, Stalin said, "There are political parties functioning with the objective of securing a place in history.

We are also seeing political parties sprouting out of the blue. What is the status of such mushrooming political parties floated with the objective that they would form the next government or become the next chief minister before their inception or a day after their inception or on the day of their inception? They are wandering like political orphans."

The DMK is not such a party. DMK was formed not for power, but to serve the poor, downtrodden and farmers, the CM added.

Parties trying to create confusion to oust DMK regime

Accusing some parties of trying to create confusion and instigate violence in the name of religion and caste to oust the DMK government, he said the victory of the Secular Progressive Alliance in all 40 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 Parliamentary polls would be a befitting reply to them.

"It is not a victory of the Secular Progressive Alliance in Tamil Nadu alone. We are fully engaged in the efforts to secure a big victory in all states," Stalin said, a little over a week after dismissing the idea of a third front without Congress as a 'pointless' exercise which would only benefit the BJP.

Indira asked DMK not to oppose emergency

Tracing the history of the DMK since its inception in 1949 to the latest Assembly poll victory in 2021, the CM said that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had cautioned the DMK not to oppose the Emergency imposed by her, but then chief minister late M Karunanidhi prioritized democracy over his rule and lost his government.

Recalling that the messengers of Indira had conveyed to Karunanidhi that his government might be dismissed if he did not pay heed to the PM's advice of not opposing the emergency, Stalin said that Indira imposed Emergency in the country to "protect herself from a crisis".

"We were ruling in Tamil Nadu then. At that time, there is a message for Kalaignar (Karunanidhi). From where? From Delhi. Messengers deputed by Madam Indira Gandhi inform him that (you) should not oppose Emergency and that if opposed, the (DMK) government will fall the next second," he said.

However, Karunanidhi told them he was not bothered even about his life and that democracy was important for him, said Stalin, reiterating that Karunanidhi had successfully proposed a resolution against Emergency at a meeting on Marina, only to see the DMK government dismissed shortly later, Stalin added.