<p>Tamil Nadu’s principal opposition party Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) suffered an embarrassment on Tuesday when its sitting MLA, Ku. Ka. Selvam, met BJP President J P Nadda in New Delhi and questioned the party leadership over ties with Congress.</p>.<div dir="ltr"><p>Just stopping short of joining the BJP officially, Selvam, considered close to DMK President M K Stalin, spoke in the saffron party’s voice during his interaction with journalists after meeting Nadda by declaring that the DMK should snap its ties with the Congress.</p><p>In a direct attack on Stalin, Selvam also said internal party elections should be held in the DMK and needled him for not condemning YouTube channel Karuppar Kootam’s disparaging remarks against Lord Murugan. The legislator won the 2016 assembly polls from Thousand Lights assembly constituency that was represented by Stalin four times in the past.</p><p>Tamil television channels and social media were abuzz with speculation that Selvam was to join the BJP on Tuesday evening. However, it was an anti-climax of sorts when Selvam declared he had “not joined the BJP” but flew to the national capital only to request Railway Minister Piyush Goyal to “sanction two elevators” for a railway station in his constituency. Sources said it is just a matter of time Selvam joins the BJP.</p><p>“DMK President M K Stalin should sever all ties with Rahul Gandhi and (Gandhi) family who have criticized the good work of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Selvam told reporters, reading from a sheet, often fumbling. He also dared the DMK leadership to act against him.</p><p>Political analysts said Selvam targeting the DMK leadership could be part of the BJP’s plan to embarrass the Dravidian party and its leader Stalin ahead of the 2021 assembly polls. BJP could have tapped Selvam with the help of V P Duraisamy, a long-time DMK man who jumped the ship to the saffron party in May, as it was an open secret that the legislator was sulking.</p><p>An MGR loyalist, Selvam, who joined the DMK in 1990s after quitting the AIADMK, was upset over not being appointed as Chennai West district secretary of the DMK following incumbent J Anbazhagan’s demise in June.</p><p>With the party preferring a low-weight Sitrarasu who was backed by Stalin’s son and youth wing secretary Udhayanidhi for the post, Selvam was upset. Intense speculation that Udhayanidhi might test his electoral fortunes from his constituency in the next elections could have also led to Selvam exploring other options.</p><p>Political commentator Prof. Ramu Manivannan said the BJP was following the same model that it implemented in other states in Tamil Nadu as well.</p><p>“The BJP has sent a clear signal that it is in Tamil Nadu for a long haul. But the popularity of any party will have to be tested in elections and not through manipulations. On the other hand, the DMK must demonstrate confidence in facing the 2021 polls,” Manivannan, Head of the Department of Politics & Public Administration, University of Madras, told DH.</p></div>
<p>Tamil Nadu’s principal opposition party Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) suffered an embarrassment on Tuesday when its sitting MLA, Ku. Ka. Selvam, met BJP President J P Nadda in New Delhi and questioned the party leadership over ties with Congress.</p>.<div dir="ltr"><p>Just stopping short of joining the BJP officially, Selvam, considered close to DMK President M K Stalin, spoke in the saffron party’s voice during his interaction with journalists after meeting Nadda by declaring that the DMK should snap its ties with the Congress.</p><p>In a direct attack on Stalin, Selvam also said internal party elections should be held in the DMK and needled him for not condemning YouTube channel Karuppar Kootam’s disparaging remarks against Lord Murugan. The legislator won the 2016 assembly polls from Thousand Lights assembly constituency that was represented by Stalin four times in the past.</p><p>Tamil television channels and social media were abuzz with speculation that Selvam was to join the BJP on Tuesday evening. However, it was an anti-climax of sorts when Selvam declared he had “not joined the BJP” but flew to the national capital only to request Railway Minister Piyush Goyal to “sanction two elevators” for a railway station in his constituency. Sources said it is just a matter of time Selvam joins the BJP.</p><p>“DMK President M K Stalin should sever all ties with Rahul Gandhi and (Gandhi) family who have criticized the good work of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Selvam told reporters, reading from a sheet, often fumbling. He also dared the DMK leadership to act against him.</p><p>Political analysts said Selvam targeting the DMK leadership could be part of the BJP’s plan to embarrass the Dravidian party and its leader Stalin ahead of the 2021 assembly polls. BJP could have tapped Selvam with the help of V P Duraisamy, a long-time DMK man who jumped the ship to the saffron party in May, as it was an open secret that the legislator was sulking.</p><p>An MGR loyalist, Selvam, who joined the DMK in 1990s after quitting the AIADMK, was upset over not being appointed as Chennai West district secretary of the DMK following incumbent J Anbazhagan’s demise in June.</p><p>With the party preferring a low-weight Sitrarasu who was backed by Stalin’s son and youth wing secretary Udhayanidhi for the post, Selvam was upset. Intense speculation that Udhayanidhi might test his electoral fortunes from his constituency in the next elections could have also led to Selvam exploring other options.</p><p>Political commentator Prof. Ramu Manivannan said the BJP was following the same model that it implemented in other states in Tamil Nadu as well.</p><p>“The BJP has sent a clear signal that it is in Tamil Nadu for a long haul. But the popularity of any party will have to be tested in elections and not through manipulations. On the other hand, the DMK must demonstrate confidence in facing the 2021 polls,” Manivannan, Head of the Department of Politics & Public Administration, University of Madras, told DH.</p></div>
