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Vaiko's crossover

My intense admiration for MDMK leader Vaiko has declined after his decision to leave the DPA to strike an alliance with the AIADMK. He has explained his sudden shift in terms of putting his party first. As he could not convince his district secretaries, party functionaries and cadres to stay with the DPA he had to move to the AIADMK front, he claims. Does it mean left to himself he would have preferred to stay on in the DMK-led front? Instead of leading the party, has he willingly allowed himself to be led by it? And he says DMK chief M. Karunanidhi is a "prisoner of circumstances?"

D. Samuel Lawrence,
Madurai, T.N.

By switching over from the DMK-led DPA to the AIADMK, Mr. Vaiko has compromised his ideology for 35 seats in the coming elections to the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

M. Geoffrey Winster,
Chennai

Mr. Vaiko's claim that he will not give up his ideology under any circumstances is amusing. What is his ideology? Contesting elections in 35 seats? Politics cannot get any worse.

L. Marinstine Fernando,
Pune

Mr. Vaiko's crossover proves that ideology is the last of priorities, thanks to the success of coalition governments. If it is possible for politicians to sink their differences during elections, why can they not do so to resolve the long-pending issues of the people?

R. Daniel Rubaraj,
Madurai, T.N.

I really wonder how Mr. Vaiko, for a few extra seats, can forget the treatment meted out to him by his current ally and how the AIADMK and its leaders can put aside the slanderous remarks they have made against Mr. Vaiko in the past.

M. Vishnuvardhan Reddy,
Thanjavur, T.N.

The AIADMK-MDMK alliance is unholy and strikes at the roots of ethics. What happened to all their differences on POTA, the LTTE, Sethusamudram project and so on? How will the leaders of the parties address election rallies with shiploads of differences among them?

C. Balasubramanian,
Chennai

While Mr. Vaiko can cite many reasons for parting ways with the DPA, he cannot cite one legitimate reason for aligning with the AIADMK. Could Hanuman have given a credible reason if he had joined Ravana to defeat Rama? Though we have seen many political parties switching alliances in the past, the MDMK- AIADMK pact, for obvious reasons, is incomprehensible and deplorable.

R.M. Manoharan,
Chennai

Mr. Vaiko's reasoning for the switchover — that his party was humiliated by the DMK and its leaders — is least convincing. Did the other side treat him very well by imprisoning him for 19 months? The AIADMK Government wrote to the Centre asking for a ban on the MDMK. Was that good treatment? Politicians are responsible to the people for their words and deeds. Mr. Vaiko must explain his stand on the issues raised.

K.R. Parthasarathy,
Bangalore

The DMK's criticism of Mr. Vaiko is akin to the pot calling kettle black. If the DMK could align with the ideologically opposite BJP earlier, and its long-time opponent Congress now, there is nothing wrong in Mr. Vaiko joining hands with the AIADMK. Almost all parties compromise their principles for the sake of a few seats. Indian voters are reconciled to it and have long given up trying to make sense of such alliances.

V.S. Krishnan,
Coimbatore

Mr. Vaiko has only followed Mr. Karunanidhi's example of switching sides at the eleventh hour. The DMK aligned with the Congress in 1980 after bitterly criticising the Emergency. Just before the Lok Sabha elections in 2004, it left the BJP front after enjoying the fruits of its association for five years.

S. Lakshminarasimhan,
Chennai

The DMK had neither any compunction nor difficulty in explaining the anomaly of aligning with the Congress in 1980. A decade-and-a-half later, the Congress forced the fall of the I.K. Gujral Government because it would not drop the DMK Ministers. Yet the DMK had no problems explaining its coming together with the Congress in 2004. Why should Mr. Vaiko or Chief Minister Jayalalithaa now explain their alliance in the light of Mr. Vaiko's detention under POTA? What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

N. Parthasarathy,
Mumbai

Mr. Vaiko's crossover is a severe blow to the DPA. He could not have remained submissive just to coalesce with the DMK. He is a leader of some standing and should be respected for his experience.

Kumar Nagarajan,
Chennai

The seasoned and astute Mr. Vaiko knows how, where and when to move coins to reap a good harvest. Unlike the DMK, which has consistently enjoyed power under the BJP and the Congress regime — a fact made possible by its inconsistent alliances — Mr. Vaiko has never staked his prestige for power

V.E. Venkataramani,
Chennai

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