Indomitable spirit

The passing away of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa marks a watershed moment in the State’s politics. It is also the gravest test yet faced by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), the party whose leadership she fought for and won after the death of her mentor and party founder MG Ramachandran, and the party of which she has been the undisputed supreme leader since 1989-90. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Jayalalithaa was the AIADMK and the AIADMK was Jayalalithaa, such was the absolute control she exercised over it, and the charismatic sway she held over her followers. That in itself poses the biggest challenge for the AIADMK. With no clear second line of command and no anointed successor in place, the party will have to quickly come to terms with the loss of its leader and put together a team which can take her unfinished agenda forward. For the millions of her party cadres who literally worshipped the ground she walked on, the loss will be more difficult to come to terms with. For them, Jayalalithaa was the benevolent Amma, the mother who could do no wrong. For her detractors, of whom there were many, the AIADMK supremo could do nothing right; for them, she was high-handed, arrogant and corrupt. Whatever be the view one may have held, there can be no denying Jayalalithaa’s ability to connect with the masses, and her ability to come back fighting from every setback. In power or out of it, she had the ability to make friends and strike alliances — even with those who had been highly critical of her. She was equally quick to dump allies when back in power, as quick to make friends as in making enemies.

From 1991, when she stormed to power in the elections held after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Jayalalithaa created history . She unified the AIADMK, which had split into two after the death of the party’s founder,, and broke the glass ceiling in a male dominated Dravidian political culture. In the initial years of her first term as Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa was known for her extremely tough stand against the Sri Lankan Tamil militant group LTTE, which was behind Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination. In the latter period of the term, she was besieged by corruption charges, the extra-constitutional role played by her close friend and confidante Sasikala and her family, so much so that Jayalalithaa frittered away the massive mandate that she had got. Jayalalithaa was jailed on corruption charges, fought a long-drawn-out court battle against them — a decision on her acquittal is still pending before the Supreme Court — and each time her detractors felt she was down on the mat, she would bounce back with greater vigour. And, each time she was voted to power, she would come up with populist schemes targeting the poor and the needy. True, some of these had a significant positive impact on Tamil Nadu’s human development indices, but they came at a high cost. The State’s electricity sector is one of the most indebted in the country — for which an equal share of the blame can be laid at the door of the DMK. The State’s infrastructure has suffered and Tamil Nadu has slipped in competitiveness. Nevertheless, it was during her first tenure as Chief Minister that the second manufacturing revolution happened in the State — she assiduously wooed and brought global automobile major Ford Motor Company to set up base here. This was followed by a wave of automotive investments.

She portrayed herself as one fighting for the State’s rights. There were no half-measures in whatever she did. Either you were with her or against her. If there was one thing that Jayalalithaa had in abundance, it was confidence in her ability. She believed she was destined for greater things. She even harboured national level ambitions. This would have played out well had she played her political cards right and not burnt her bridges with the many people she befriended during her over three-decade-long political journey. It was her charisma and her never-say-die spirit that saw her through her many trials and tribulations.

In the end, her record was mixed. Her failure to build a second-rung leadership leaves a question mark over the future course of her party. Even in Government, all the decisions were hers and hers alone. With the kind of mandate that she had, Jayalalithaa could have done wonders for the State, especially in the area of reforming its finances and creaky infrastructure. But, here again she was a prisoner of circumstances. She did undertake widespread reforms, but after one electoral setback, she decided hard decisions were not for her. For Tamil Nadu’s sake, one can only hope that the political transition is smooth and administration and governance resume in right earnest, to not only carry forward her legacy, but also ensure that the State regains its rightful place at the top.

COMMENT NOW