Expelled from the party by his father four years ago and refused re-entry by his younger brother M.K. Stalin now, M.K. Alagiri, once the DMK’s strongman in Madurai, took out a not-so-successful rally with his supporters in the party’s den, Chennai.
After the “silent rally” to pay homage to his father at the memorial on Marina, Mr. Alagiri claimed that 1.5 lakh partymen had attended it. In reality, the turnout was a fraction of his claim with supporters, largely from the southern districts, coming in. While many of his supporters who had gathered here were expecting him to make an announcement about his future plans, he merely thanked every participant. “There is no specific reason to hold this rally. It is to pay homage to Kalaignar (Karunanidhi),” he told journalists after an hour-long rally, covering barely 2 km in scorching heat, much to the disappointment of the crowd.
Asked about reports of his supporters being removed from the party, he asked, “One-and-a-half lakh people have come here. Will they sack everyone?” Asked about the rally, DMK treasurer Durai Murugan in Vellore said, “No comments.”
The party’s new president, Mr. Stalin, has clearly told the party leaders to refrain from speaking anything about his older brother, meaning ignore him totally.
The rally was supposed to be Mr. Alagiri’s show of strength. His supporters started assembling near the Triplicane police station from 8 a.m. itself. At 10 a.m., when the rally was supposed to begin, there were a few thousand cadre.
Mr. Alagiri’s supporters estimate that he can defeat the DMK in the polls by fielding rival candidates in about 10 constituencies in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Sahadevan of Paramkudi claimed that Mr. Stalin could never become a Chief Minister without his brother’s support down south.