The 50-km long drive from Annanji Vilakku at Vadaveeranaickenpatti to Kadamalaikundu in Theni district is picturesque. People living in the small hamlets on either side of the highway stop a tempo van fitted with speakers on all four sides. A middle-aged man, seated next to the driver, rolls down the window and smiles at the crowd. “Can you recognise me,” he asks. “Dhinakaran” replies a woman. “What is my symbol?” he asks again. “Cooker” replies an old lady from the crowd. T.T.V. Dhinakaran, the founder-leader of Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), an offshoot of the AIADMK, is contesting from the Theni Parliamentary constituency after 25 years.
It has been a roller coaster ride for TTV, the nephew of estranged AIADMK leader V.K. Sasikala, for the past seven years. Dhinakaran had seen it all—expulsion, betrayal, and incarceration. The 60-year-old leader, who was once at cross-purposes with the BJP is now contesting in the BJP-led NDA from Theni, making the battle intense for the ruling DMK alliance.
The DMK has fielded Thanga Tamilselvan, who was once a close aide of Dhinakaran. Interestingly, all three prominent candidates—Tamilselvan of the DMK, Dr V.T. Narayanasamy of the AIADMK and Dhinakaran—come from the same school of AIADMK, groomed by Jayalalithaa. Tamilselvan once vacated his Andipatti assembly seat for Jayalalithaa to contest. Dhinakaran and Tamilselvan belong to the prominent Thevar community, a powerful OBC community in South Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK campaign in Theni, which is considered to be the party’s bastion because of former chief minister O Panneerselvam and his incumbent MP son O.P. Ravindranath Kumar, lacks enthusiasm. The lack of energy in the AIADMK camp again helps Dhinakaran consolidate the anti-DMK votes.
Dhinakaran speaks to THE WEEK, while on the campaign. Excerpts:
It has been seven years since you launched your party, and you have not made big strides. How crucial is this election for you?
I don't anything as crucial in life. Long back my leader Jayalalithaa fielded me as a candidate from Theni and I won. After 14 years I am coming back as a candidate of the NDA with my own party to the same constituency. people are recognising my services to this constituency. I understand that the people were waiting for me to come back and contest from here.
Theni is known to be an AIADMK bastion. People always vote for the two-leaves here. Do you think there is much prospect for you in this election?
In 2017 in RK Nagar, after our leader left us, I contested. RK Nagar has always been an AIADMK bastion from 1977. I contested from RK Nagar on an independent symbol—Cooker. People voted. People look at the credentials of the candidate contesting and the party he or she is associated with. In 1977 MGR won from Theni. After that Theni had been AIADMK’s bastion. After my leader (Jayalalithaa) came to the party, she was the only winning candidate in the south. The symbol was frozen then. But if you go through the vote records, she was the only candidate from MGR’s party to win.
In the last seven years, your political life had witnessed a huge change. You had to launch your party. But people have always associated you with the AIADMK and the two-leaves symbol. What do you have to say?
(Edappadi K.) Palanisami is not Amma. He is not MGR. He has done a political blunder by giving 10.5 per cent reservation to the Vanniyar community. That also has not worked out. He did that only to cheat them. That has wounded the people of South Tamil Nadu, which is spoiling the prospects of the AIADMK. He had expelled us - myself and O Panneerselvam from the party, by betrayal. He has taken over MGR’s party which was launched against betrayal. People of Tamil Nadu, especially south, are totally against him. People from the south don't see him as the AIADMK leader. I have a party of my own now. I have launched it with Amma’s face on the party flag. The people of this region (South Tamil Nadu) want me to retrieve the AIADMK from Palanisami and give it to an able leader.
Do you think retrieving the AIADMK is possible? You have launched your own outfit. You have always said that you don’t want to lead AIADMK.
O. Panneerselvam and I have come together to retrieve our party and give it to the cadres and the real followers of Amma. I have launched my own party with Amma’s face on the flag. So I will not merge my party with AIADMK. I can only be in an alliance. We will all work together to get back our party and give it to the real followers of Amma. We are very clear on that. I do not have any ambition or intention to lead the AIADMK.
Why do you not want to lead the AIADMK? Is it just because you have your own outfit? Anyhow, you are also considered an AIADMK man.
I already told you. How can I leave my party?
In Tamil Nadu, the battle had always been between the two Dravidian parties. In such a situation, retrieving the party and giving it to someone will in any way help you politically.
Panneerselvam is already fighting for it. We will retrieve it and give it to the cadres. Let the cadres decide the right leader. Moreover, the scenario in Tamil Nadu has changed. Till Amma was there, the fight was between the DMK and the AIADMK. It is changing now. AIADMK has gone to the third place now. You just see after the election. You will witness the results. In most of the constituencies, it will be in third place.
You were accused of bribing to avail the two-leaves symbol and jailed. It was said the BJP was behind it. But now you have aligned with the BJP.
Yes. I was arrested. But it was a conspiracy. There is no truth in it. Even now during the alliance talks there was a rumour that the BJP was pressurising me to contest in the Lotus symbol. Again, all these are conspiracies.
But ideologically you have always been against the BJP. In the 2019 election too, you had the same option to get into the NDA with your party. You didn’t align with the BJP. Why did you choose to join the BJP-led NDA now?
At that time Palanisami was there and moreover no one approached me. The AMMK is only against DMK. And AIADMK is headed by a betrayer. So if we get back the AIADMK, it can be our alliance partner. We will align with them then. All other parties we have the option of having an alliance. Ideology is different and electoral alliance is different.
You said ideology and electoral alliance are different. But BJP is for Hindutva. The opposition has been calling the BJP’s activities as fascism. What do you have to say?
You are not getting it right. Only the DMK and the opposition say so. BJP is not for Hindutva. In fact, the idea of secularism propagated by the Congress and the DMK is not correct. Secularism to me means being protectors of all religions. They say that they are the saviours of the minority. But they are against the majority. This is religious bias. If you say BJP is for Hindutva, then DMK is against Hindutva. That is also communalism. In Tamil Nadu whether you accept it or not, BJP has grown and people want Modi to become the prime minister. So the people of Tamil Nadu will vote in favour of him.
What is your take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi?
India is very safe under him. Whether we like it or not, he is definitely going to win for the third time with a thumping majority. In many states, people are supporting the BJP. In Tamil Nadu also, you wait and see, NDA will win. The opinion polls may give you a different picture. The alliance will get a good percentage of vote share.
What is your take on Rahul Gandhi?
I don’t have anything to say. He is the leader of the Congress party. To me, Modi is the tallest leader. There is no match for Modi as the prime minister.
Coming back to AIADMK and Palanisami, you were sidelined from the party. But the government went on for four years. Why is that you never commented on the AIADMK government then?
I was opposing them. In fact, I was expelled from the party because I opposed them being corrupt. I told them not to allow corruption and follow the footsteps of Amma. But they did not listen to me and expelled me from the party. Now it is said that he is the man behind the Kodand heist and murder. Because of corruption and their misrule, DMK came to power in 2021.
You mentioned the Kodanad heist and murder case and said Palanisami is behind it. How can you say that?
Without evidence, I don’t want to say anything. But the real culprit should be arrested. There is a feeling all over India and Tamil Nadu, that Palanisamy is behind it.
