"What is this, sir? You are the one who toiled for so many years to build up this party. And like a calf kicking the one who raised it, that lad Ilango, nurtured by you, has got you removed from the position of the President of our party!" said Shanmugam.
“Backstabbing has become very common in politics! I promoted that young man, ignoring the objections of many senior leaders, only because I thought he would make a good leader for the party. But like you said, the calf I had raised kicked me in the chest” said Velayudham, with bitterness.
“This is outrageous! I still can’t accept that someone like you, who is seen as the embodiment of our party, has been removed through a resolution of the General Council of our party!” said Ramu, another loyal supporter of Velayudham.
“In the upcoming elections, our party is poised to win. And if that happens, you are the one who will become the Chief Minister. That is why Ilango, in conspiracy with a few senior leaders, convened an emergency General Council meeting when you were abroad and had you removed. Still, out of the 96 members who attended the meeting, 46 voted in your favor. The party workers are with you. Ilango won’t be able to do anything” said Anbu, a senior leader.
“No, Anbu. Ilango has created an image that he is in full control of the party. People have a habit of standing behind winners. That is the natural order of things - more so in politics. If we are not careful, we will be left with nothing. Even if the grassroot members are with us, when the party machinery is in his hands, there is not much we can do,” said Velayudham.
“So, what are we going to do now?”
“There is already a split in the party. Since most of the members are with us, we can file a petition with the Election Commission requesting that the party symbol be allotted to us. The Commission won’t take an immediate decision. Instead, it will freeze the symbol and assign separate symbols to both the factions. Then, we can garner people's support and win the election. Ilango will be left with nothing. But Ilango has the support of the ruling party at the Centre. So, the Election Commission might consider the fact that I was removed through a resolution of the General Council and allot the symbol to him. If he gets the symbol, it will work in his favor. Even though we may have more public support than him, a sizeable number of voters will be inclined to make their choice based on the symbol. Because of the advantage of having the symbol with him, Ilango may end up winning more seats than us. And with the ruling party at the Centre supporting him, it won’t be surprising if he wins the election and forms the government!” said Velayudham.
“In that case, what are we going to do?” asked Shanmugam, worried.
“We will see. There are still six months left before the election. Let us wait and see what decision the Election Commission makes. If the Commission gives him the symbol, we will have to face a major challenge.”
As Velayudham had feared, the Election Commission allotted the party symbol to Ilango’s faction.
Velayudham summoned a meeting of his supporters.
“What I feared has happened. Ilango is going to ally with the ruling party at the Centre. He will spend enormous sums of money, use every trick in the book, and try to win the election. If he becomes the Chief Minister, he will wipe us out completely, using oppressive measures against our party. There is only one way to stop this!” said Velayudham, and paused.
“What way?”
After a brief hesitation, Velayudham said, “The Chief Minister has sent me a message through one of his emissaries. If we form an alliance with his party, he is willing to give us 40% of the seats, the post of the Deputy Chief Minister, and ten ministerial positions, if our alliance wins the election. What do you say? Should we accept this proposal?”
“What are you saying, sir? We were in a position to contest and win the election on our own. And now you want to ally with the very party we have been opposing fiercely, and settle for the position of a junior partner in the alliance? You, who had held the position of the Chief Minister in the past, now want to accept the post of the Deputy Chief Minister... How can we agree to this?” asked Anbu.
“We can be proud of our past glory and confident of public support for our party. But, we must never underestimate our opponents. If Ilango becomes the Chief Minister, we are finished. This is our only option to stop him from coming to power. If we ally with the ruling party, our alliance will win big. Then Ilango will be left with nothing. I am not going to be the Deputy Chief Minister, Anbu will be. I will ask for the role of the alliance coordinator - a key position. The Chief Minister will agree to this. He has no other choice. So the reins will still be in our hands. What do you say?” said Velayudham.
Everyone clapped enthusiastically and expressed their support for Velayudham’s decision.
Section 2
Knowing the Right Place
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