Stalin’s invite to Akhilesh Yadav to unveil VP Singh statue sparks talk of DMK leader’s national ambitions

On 20 April, Stalin had announced in the state Assembly that Singh’s statue would be installed in Chennai as a token of gratitude of the Tamil people for his contribution to social justice. It was under Singh that the Mandal Commission recommendations of reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) were implemented.

The announcement came a couple of weeks after the DMK had hosted a national-level conference with 19 Opposition leaders from across the country.

At the conclave, Stalin launched the All India Federation for Social Justice, a forum of Opposition parties against the BJP. It later seeded the formation of the Opposition INDIA bloc.

Lakhs of OBC & SC/ST posts are lying vacant, the hard-fought rights of Backward Castes are being usurped by EWS quota.

As the causes of concern are glaring, I stressed the need for a collective intervention & constant vigil to uphold Social Justice at the @aifsoj conference. pic.twitter.com/CZNHxNhMFc

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) April 3, 2023

Since the BJP has been taking on INDIA using the DMK’s anti-Sanatana Dharma stand in election campaigns in North India, the DMK decided on employing social justice as an effective counterpoint to the saffron party, making it the motif in the campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Usually, Stalin used to invite all party national leaders or constitutional authorities like the President to such major functions. To unveil his father and former chief minister M Karunanidhi’s statue, he invited the then Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu.

But choosing Yadav, specifically, for the unveiling of Singh’s statue has raised several questions regarding the political calculations of the DMK, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Also read: DMK slams Governor Ravi for ‘propaganda’ against social justice

DMK and VP Singh

Explaining the relationship between DMK and VP Singh, G Nagendran, professor of Political Science said: “Earlier, in the late 1980s and 1990s, though the DMK had been in the Congress-led alliance, the national party disregarded DMK several times. It was VP Singh who gave proper recognition to the DMK in Delhi politics. The DMK’s first Union minister was Murasoli Maran in the VP Singh Cabinet.”

“The BJP toppled the Singh government in 1990 over the Mandal agitation. Though the BJP had supported the Singh government, it opposed the OBC reservation. They took Singh’s opposition to their Ram Rath Yatra as a reason to topple the government,” he told South First.

By then, the DMK was the only party left supporting the Singh government and it organised rallies in support of the Mandal Commission report for four days across Tamil Nadu.

“The DMK president Karunanidhi and Murasoli Maran took Singh on a tour throughout the state and projected themselves as the political champions of social justice,” Nagendran said.

Also read: Struggle to ensure social justice will continue, says DMK 

DMK, Akhilesh and Lok Sabha elections

Prof Nagendran firmly believes that Stalin is eyeing a bigger role in national politics.

“Stalin could have unveiled the statue by himself. But he doesn’t want to do that because DMK is eyeing national politics and wants to influence the post-election scenario, opening the gates for a third front, in case there is any problem with the INDIA bloc. That’s the reason why they have invited Akhilesh Yadav to the function because Akhilesh also has a ‘third front’ card with Rashtriya Janata Dal and Janata Dal (United),” he said,

Met DMK MP Shri TR Baalu in Delhi and received an invite from the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Shri MK Stalin, to attend the unveiling ceremony of former Prime Minister Shri VP Singh's statue. pic.twitter.com/O4Qg4HuHqg

— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) November 20, 2023

“Political parties are already batting for caste census and it was VP Singh who implemented the Mandal Commission’s recommendations for social justice. Stalin wants to show beyond Tamil Nadu that he is the face of social justice,” political observer Ravindran Duraisamy said.

“Stalin wants to ensure that he is one of the pioneers among the anti-BJP parties, so that it may help him to have an easy relationship with leaders who are already aligned with the social justice platform beyond the INDIA bloc. Though there are possibilities that he may form a national-level third front post elections, I don’t think he will lead a fight against the BJP,” Duraisamy told South First.

Also read: ‘Modi govt restricted women to traditional roles’: Sonia Gandhi

Akhilesh is apt choice, says DMK

Speaking to South First, Professor Constantine Ravindran, spokesperson of DMK said: “In his speeches, Singh would say, ‘Delhi may be the capital of India, but Tamil Nadu is the capital of social justice’. He would also explain in simple terms why reservation for OBCs was brought in. He argued in almost all his speeches that the South fared better than Northern states, attributing the same to social justice measures and policies.

“He argued that equal distribution of power was what he aimed through the 27 percent reservation for OBCs. He asserted that he was proud to have lost his government for standing for the cause of social justice.”

When asked about the significance and political calculations in inviting the Samajwadi leader to unveil Singh’s statue, Ravindran said, “Everyone knows about the relationship between Kalaignar Karunanidhi and Mulayam Singh and it continues (to the next generation) even after the two great leaders.

“Akhilesh is the OBC leader at the national level. A couple of months ago, Akhilesh stated that the Samajwadi Party is the DMK of North India. He is the apt one to unveil the statue.”