Family reunion

by Kavitha Muralidharan

(December 10, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) On November 21, the DMK's mouthpiece Murasoli carried a stinging note from Chief Minister and party supremo M. Karunanidhi explaining how his close relatives, the Marans, had backstabbed him. But on December 1, there was a dramatic turnabout. The Maran brothers-media baron Kalanidhi Maran and former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran-called on Karunanidhi for a sentimental reunion.

A beaming Karunanidhi later declared that his "heart was glad, and eyes moist" because of the Marans' comeback. Incidentally, the Marans were welcomed at Karunanidhi's Gopalapuram residence in Chennai by his son M.K. Azhagiri, who was their bete noire till recently. Azhagiri turned against the Marans in May 2007 when the Marans' newspaper Dinakaran carried a survey which said Azhagiri was unpopular. Azhagiri's supporters burnt the Dinakaran office in Madurai killing three employees. A furious Kalanidhi Maran vowed he would not rest until justice was done, and his Sun TV termed Azhagiri a rowdy. Karunanidhi then removed Dayanidhi Maran from the Union cabinet, and made his daughter Kanimozhi a Rajya Sabha member. Repeated efforts by the Marans for a rapprochement were rebuffed.

Though the Marans called on Karunanidhi on his birthday on June 3, he refused to meet them. To counter the influence of Sun TV, the DMK came out with Kalaignar TV, and recently, Azhagiri's supporters prevented in Madurai the screening of the film Kadhalil Vizhunthen produced by Kalanidhi. And they freely distributed pirated CDs of the movie among the public. So the sudden bonhomie between the Marans and Azhagiri has taken political observers by surprise.

Karunanidhi declared that his sons Azhagiri and M.K. Stalin took the lead for the patch-up. "He had a heart, hence the change of heart," said Karunanidhi about Azhagiri. Sources say Azhagiri's daughter Kayalvizhi and Karunanidhi's daughter Selvi, who is married to Marans' uncle Murasoli Selvam, also had a hand in the family reunion.

A political reason for the patch-up is the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Some DMK leaders, including Stalin, felt the support of the popular Sun TV was essential for the campaign.

"Especially when anti-incumbency factor is so strong and the government is facing a lot of problems we cannot afford a media group like Sun TV to talk against us," said a Stalin supporter.
The absence of Kanimozhi at the meeting was intriguing, though Karunanidhi said she was leaving for Delhi to attend an important meeting on the Sri Lankan issue. The absence raises several questions about her political future. Likewise, the future of Union Communication Minister A. Raja, who replaced Dayanidhi, hangs in the balance. According to party sources, no decision has been taken on Kalaignar TV and Dayanidhi's return to the Union cabinet. In any case, Dayanidhi can be assured that he would be allowed to contest under the DMK banner from his Central Chennai constituency in the Lok Sabha elections.

- Sri Lanka Guardian