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V P Singh to cool DMK-TMC tensions
George Iype in New Delhi
Former prime minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh is negotiating peace between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Tamil Maanila Congress in a bid to keep the 13-party United Front together.
Aided by senior UF leaders like Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet, the ailing Raja of Manda has met DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and TMC chief G K Moopanar separately in the last few days.
The former premier, who was instrumental in forging the UF 19 months ago, has been striving to avert a DMK-TMC break-up.
UF sources said the combine's core committee meeting on Monday entrusted V P Singh with the mission of holding peace talks between the DMK and the TMC.
"The continuance of the DMK-TMC alliance is vital for the UF's survival, and only V P Singh can be the peace-maker," a senior UF functionary told Rediff On The NeT.
He said the efforts of Singh and others like Naidu and Surjeet have made considerable progress. "We are now almost certain that the DMK-TMC will not break up," he added.
Sources said the TMC's main grouse is that most of the UF constituents did not back Moopanar's candidature for the prime minister's post twice -- after the fall of the governments led by H D Deve Gowda and Inder Kumar Gujral.
In fact, the DMK-TMC alliance showed signs of a collapse when Karunanidhi staunchly opposed Moopanar's candidature for the top job soon after Deve Gowda's exit in March this year. So did the Communists, doubting the TMC chief's credentials due to his proxmity to Sonia Gandhi.
Ever since the Lok Sabha was dissolved last week, Moopanar has met Sonia and Congress president Sitaram Kesri a number of times, leading to speculation that the TMC will switch over to a Congress-led front during the poll campaign.
One TMC MP close to Moopanar said party cadres do not want to continue the alliance with the DMK. "Party workers are adamant that the TMC should not be insensitive to an issue concerning former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's assassination," he said.
If the party breaks away from the DMK, it will have two options: to join a Congress-led front or to fight it alone with Tamil superstar Rajnikanth's help, he said.
In 1996, the DMK-TMC combine, blessed by Rajnikanth's support, thrashed the Congress-AIADMK alliance and won all the Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring Pondicherry.
But whether V P Singh will succeed in his mission depends on Karunanidhi. The DMK chief has announced that his party will review its ties with the TMC soon. Karunanidhi is, however, close to V P Singh.
TMC general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Peter Alphonse told Rediff On The NeT that his party wants to continue its alliance with the DMK.
"But if the DMK decides to break the relationship, we will be left with no option but to search for new allies," he said.
Front leaders hope that V P Singh will complete his mission by December 16, when the next UF core committee meeting would be held.
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