This Article is From Apr 25, 2009

Playing the Tamil card

Playing the Tamil card
Chennai, Sivaganga:

It is the endgame in Sri Lanka for the LTTE. And back home, in Tamil Nadu, it's a political game that's being played out at campaigns. Like the one at Sivaganga.

For the Congress, the very mention of the LTTE - the outfit that assassinated it's leader Rajiv Gandhi, touches a raw nerve. Put on the back foot by the opposition for allegedly failing to protect the lives of Tamil civilians trapped in the conflict zone, the party is walking a tight rope. So Home Minister P Chidambaram could just about manage this politically correct line on Sri Lanka in his campaign.

"We are deeply concerned about the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka," he said.

For political parties like the ruling DMK which called for a 12-hour strike, the Sri Lanka crisis is a platform to score brownie points.

But for the common man in various constituencies, home minister P Chidambaram's Sivaganga, this is a non-issue.

"We can feel their pain. We understand what our Tamilians there undergo. But we can't do anything. It's their internal issue," says a local.

"ADMK loyalist will vote for ADMK. A DMK guy will vote for DMK. So will a communist. The voting pattern will not change because of the Tamil issue," opines another.

But for the new AIADMK led alliance, with pro Tiger parties like the MDMK and PMK, Sri Lanka comes as a potent political weapon to embarrass the DMK and Congress.

"This will be a huge emotive issue in this election. In Tamil Nadu 14 people have taken their lives for the Tamil cause. Has never happened before," said Anbumani Ramadoss, Former Union Health Minister & RS MP - PMK.

Observers feel that if Prabhakaran is killed or captured, the poll tide could well turn against Karunanidhi's alliance. One reason perhaps for his recent flip flops on the issue.

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