Thirumavalavan attacks Congress, wants it out of DMK-led alliance

"The teachings of Buddha are eternal, but even then Buddha did not proclaim them to be infallible. The religion of Buddha has the capacity to change according to times, a quality which no other religion can claim to have...Now what is the basis of Buddhism? If you study carefully, you will see that Buddhism is based on reason. There is an element of flexibility inherent in it, which is not found in any other religion.”

Babasaheb Dr.B.R.Ambedkar

After vitriolic attacks by Congress leader E V K S Elangovan against the DMK, it is now the turn of VCK leader and Lok Sabha MP Thol Thirumavalavan, considered the dalit face of the DMK alliance, to launch criticisms against Congress.

Though this is not the first time Thirumavalavan has taken such a stand, considering his strong pro-LTTE leanings, the vehement criticism, at a time when parties are bent on crystallizing and strengthening alliances in the run up to the elections, it has provided fodder to speculations again that all is not well in the DMKCongress alliance.

In a recent interview to a Tamil magazine, Thirumavalavan said the Congress was a “blot” on the DMK alliance and a “liability”. “The DMK should not hesitate to snap ties with the Congress,” he said. Thirumavalavan had made scathing attacks on the Congress and the UPA government during the peak of war in Sri Lanka and the subsequent defeat of the LTTE. The latest provocation for his strong anti-Congress remarks was the participation of the Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa in the valedictory ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. “What is the motive of the Congress government to invite Rajapaksa at a time when he is facing charges of war crime?’’ he questioned.

Thirumavalavan’s outburst has sparked a war of words with Karti Chidambaram, home minister P Chidambaram’s son, who has demanded the VCK’s leader’s resignation as MP. Karti demanded that Thirumavalavan, “who won as an MP with the support of Congress” should resign and face the people. Thirumavalavan’s reported statement faulting Rahul Gandhi for not calling on DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi during his visits to Chennai has also irked the Congress camp.

However, in a swift reaction, Thirumavalavan said there was no need for him to resign as it was the Congress which benefited from the Dalit vote bank in Tamil Nadu.

EVKS Elangovan, the firebrand critic of the state Congress party, dismissed Thirumavalavan as an insignificant factor in the Tamil Nadu political arena, but said his statements “did not appear” to be his own. Elangovan said, “He has aired the views of someone else (referring to the DMK leadership).”

Source: The Times of India dt 23.10.10