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Vijay Simha
NEW DELHI, AUG 9: The Congress' lethargy in releasing its list of candidates has already claimed a victim of sorts. ADMK chief Jayalalitha has asked Sonia Gandhi twice over the last two days to `at least' give her the Tamil Nadu names so she can avoid `looking foolish'.
Apparently, Jayalalitha said she was `tired of waiting' for the Congress to respond to the situation and swing into action in a difficult state like Tamil Nadu. The ADMK chief is battling a long list of rivals in the state headed by Chief Minister M Karunanidhi who is heading an alliance which includes Jayalalitha's one-time ally, the BJP.
Given the stakes in the election for herself, Jayalalitha was the first to release the list of candidates names and was also the first major political leader to hit the road. But she has one problem. She has no clue on whom she is campaigning for in the 12 seats in which the Congress is contesting. The ADMK chief has been embarrassed at least twice so far in her campaign when she looked around on thedais, in vain, for the Congress nominee to be introduced to the gathering.
For Jayalalitha, who lays great emphasis on little things like having the candidate near her on the dais, the Congress reluctance to finalise its list is nothing short of an insult. And this when she was `ready' to take on the Congress' baggage in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry when no one else was.
And tired of the delay, Jayalalitha finally took it on herself to goad the Congress into action. She first got in touch with CWC members Manmohan Singh and A K Antony, both of whom were Sonia's emissaries in the Cong-ADMK talks, asking them to `get going'.
When that didn't work, Jayalalitha is then understood to have contacted 10, Janpath, where the final clearance lies. Sonia is yet to authorise the release of her party's first list though there have been many demands for it, from the probable candidates themselves and friendly parties as well.
The Left, for example, is another bloc of parties which is keenly waiting for the Congresslist. The CPM and the CPI have already pledged their support to the Congress in the fight against the BJP and are anxious to see if Sonia is putting up candidates in the seats where the Left is contesting.
`If the Congress is serious, it must not put up anyone against us. As it is, we are fighting very few seats and where is the need for the Congress to rival us. We want to see if the Congress is ready to accommodate us in the larger battle against the BJP,' said Shameem Faizee, a member of the CPI's central secretariat.
However, the Left is not as anxious as Jayalalitha which is why it hasn't approached Sonia yet for the Congress list. The ADMK chief's predicament is perhaps understandable. On more than one occasion, she has had to push the first Congressman available on the dais as the party nominee from that constituency. Clearly, Jayalalitha feels this ad hoc arrangement will not work.
Thus, her plea to Sonia. Indications are that the Congress president may now announce the Tamil Nadu list with thenames from other states going go to polls on September 5. That should be some relief for a harassed Jayalalitha.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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