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Talk of a merger between the Congress and its various offshoots in Tamil Nadu has revived following celebrations of the 99th birth anniversary of the former Tamil Nadu chief minister and Congress leader K Kamaraj.
Leaders of the various splinter groups joined the Congress functions to commemorate the late leader's birth anniversary on Sunday and calls went out for a return of the Kamaraj rule in Tamil Nadu.
The party's splinter groups include the Tamil Maanila Congress, the Tamizhaga Rajiv Congress, the MGR-Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Makkal Tamil Desam and the Tamil Nadu Nationalist Congress.
At a function organised on the anniversary eve by the Indian National Trade Union Congress, the labour wing of the Congress, TRC chief Vazhapady K Ramamurthy indicated that he would like to return to the parent party.
The TRC was an ally of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which ruled Tamil Nadu till recently. But the TRC was one of the minor parties that the DMK cut out during seat-sharing arrangements for the May assembly elections.
The TRC could not even join the rival front led by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, as Ramamurthy had in 1998 severely criticised its chief Jayaram Jayalalitha for withdrawing support to the NDA government in New Delhi.
A recent change in favour of the TRC has been the ouster of its enemy party, the Pattali Makkal Katchi, from both the DMK and the AIADMK alliances.
With the Congress and the TMC backing the AIADMK, the TRC may find it easier to become a part of that front if it merges with its parent party.
"Who would not be interested in returning to his parent party?" Ramamurthy asked at the INTUC function. The remark was significant as his return could trigger the consolidation process the state unit of the Congress needs in order to make any impact on Tamil Nadu politics.
Meanwhile, at the anniversary celebrations on Sunday, leaders called upon the people of Tamil Nadu to get rid of Dravidian - implying the DMK and AIADMK - rule and return to the Kamaraj rule.
The function was low-key as Congress president Sonia Gandhi was not present due to engagements in New Delhi.
At a public meeting, state Congress Party chief E V K S Elangovan also urged the people to dump the DMK and the AIADMK, even though the latter is an ally. "It is time people decided to send the two Dravidian parties packing," he said.
"Restoration of Kamaraj rule is the only way the state can now progress," he added.
Indo-Asian News Services
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