Chennai: Salem is popular for its mangoes. And, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, who hails from Salem, has emerged tall in Tamilnadu political arena by bringing the PMK, whose symbol is mango, to the AIADMK’s alliance fold.
By allotting eight seats (seven Lok Sabha and one Rajya Sabha) to the Pattali Makkal Katchi and convincing the BJP, the country’s ruling party, to settle for five, Palaniswami has made a smart move. But, the most sharp and suave strategy lies in getting the support of the PMK and BJP for AIADMK candidates in the by-election to be held to 21 Assembly constituencies in Tamilnadu.
This, it is strongly felt in political circles, would go a long way in ensuring that the government, led by Palaniswami, completed its full term without any hindrance.
Interestingly, Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam (the joint coordinator and coordinator of the AIADMK) have done these things by simply sitting in Chennai, whereas, the DMK has gone all the way to New Delhi to hold alliance talks with the Congress.
On Tuesday, after seat-sharing pacts were sealed with the PMK and BJP, it was specifically announced that the alliance was being led in Tamilnadu by the AIADMK.
In the words of Union Minister and BJP’s election in-charge for Tamilnadu, Piyush Goyal, “We will support AIADMK in the by-elections to 21 Assembly seats. We have agreed to contest elections under the leadership of OPS and EPS in the State and under the leadership of Modi Ji in the Centre. We will work together so that Amma (Jayalalithaa) will be happy, and we will continue the legacy of Amma and the good work she did for Tamilnadu.”