Horse trading is not new to TN; Rajaji in 1952 and Karunanidhi in 2009 have done it in the past

Ever since three rebel AIADMK legislators resigned and defected to Chief Minister Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), the principal Opposition DMK and the AIADMK, along with others, have attacked the ruling party, accusing it of blatant horse trading to shore up its majority in the Assembly.

With one more rebel MLA, Esakki Subaya, also resigning on Tuesday and expected to join the TVK, desertions are likely to increase, rattling the AIADMK the most. Further, the government’s desire to ensure stability without relying on its constituents—the Congress, VCK and IUML, besides the Left parties extending outside support—has predictably invited criticism.

Advertisement

However, history shows that defections from the Opposition camp to the ruling side are not new to Tamil Nadu. It all began in the very first election after independence in 1952 under Rajaji (C. Rajagopalachari). In 2009, the minority DMK government under Karunanidhi accomplished this feat. As such, the DMK cannot take the moral high ground in this and apportion blame for introducing horse trading to the TVK, say analysts.

In the 2006 election, in the House of 234, the DMK secured only 96 seats. With the DMK’s allies – Congress and PMK with 34 and 18 seats respectively, extending outside support, the Karunanidhi government survived its full term. However, the Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa continued to taunt the regime as a minority one. In March 2009, MDMK legislator and articulate politician N Ramakrishnan, elected from Cumbum constituency, resigned. Fielded on the DMK ticket, he won the election from the same constituency. Later that month, Anita Radha Krishnan, a former AIADMK Minister who represented Tiruchendur in the Assembly, quit as MLA and faced re-election as a DMK nominee. He registered a thumping victory by a huge margin of over 46,000 votes.

In the 1952 election for the then Madras State, comprising parts of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka, the Congress did not have the majority. Rajaji, who did not even contest the election but was sworn in as the Chief Minister, later became a member of the Legislative Council. He secured the support of Manickavel Nayakar, who fought the election with the DMK on an anti-Congress platform. A leader of the OBC Vanniyar community, Nayakar was inducted into the ministry to secure the support of six MLAs from his Commonweal Party. Now, it appears that history is repeating itself. But the TVK is not shy of poaching.