Speculation rife over meeting between DMK's Stalin, Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit 

CHENNAI: A few eyebrows were raised when DMK working president M K Stalin received a surprise invite from Raj Bhavan on Tuesday at a time when Tamil Nadu has been boiling over the issue of implementation of the Supreme Court verdict on setting the Cauvery Water Management Board and the Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee.

Speculations are rife in political circles in the State, where BJP has been battling to gain a foothold, that the meeting between Governor Banwarilal Purohit and DMK’s de facto chief was an attempt of the saffron party to make peace with the latter, possibly leading to political realignment.

Stalin seemed mellowed down in his rhetoric against the Governor minutes after the hour-long chat.
Political observers feel that the meeting could be a ‘reconnaissance’ mission by the BJP’s top leadership before inching closer to the DMK.

“It looks like BJP’s reconnaissance mission in Tamil Nadu,” R Mani, a senior journalist and political analyst, told Express on Wednesday.

Although it was stated that the Governor had explained to Stalin the reasons behind handpicking Tamma Suryanarayana Shastri as the Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University (TNALU), both were learnt to have discussed politics and the crisis the current dispensation in the State is facing due to an internal rivalry.

It is considered unprecedented that a Governor has invited the Opposition Leader to explain the rationale behind a key decision he had taken.

Considering the current political situation in which political parties and farmers’ bodies are sounding the bugle over implementation of the Supreme Court’s verdict on the Cauvery river water sharing dispute, AIADMK MPs are looking unrelenting in stalling the proceedings of Parliament and the Madras High Court’s verdict on the disqualification of 18 MLAs owing allegiance to rebel leader TTV Dhinakaran is likely to be pronounced shortly, the invite Stalin had from Raj Bhavan indicates that the BJP might be thinking it wise to take sides with the DMK as AIADMK is losing strength due to internal rivalry.

Months ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dropped a political bomb in Tamil Nadu when his convoy meandered through the narrow lanes of Gopalapuram to visit the ailing Karunanidhi leading to speculations of a political realignment.

Responding to questions on the possibility for the DMK having a truck with the saffron party, Rajya Sabha member and DMK’s organisation secretary RS Bharathi told Express, “Our working president has already made it clear that our party will have no truck with the BJP. There is no change in the stand.”

He claimed that the meeting Stalin had with the Governor was to discuss certain issues raised by the former. “Certain issues were discussed during the meeting. The Cauvery issue too came up for discussion.”
On the one hand, the BJP seems to express its intention to move close to the DMK and on the other, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is trying her best to rope in the Dravidian major to float a third front representing the aspirations of regional parties.

She had a meeting with DMK MP Kanimozhi to discuss the matter. Referring to Kanimozhi-Mamata meeting, Bharathi said, “We get invitations from several places. So, we have to meet the leaders. Yet, we will take a final call only before the polls.”