Eclipsed By Son Rise

Second-rung leaders and grassroot workers are sitting up and taking notice of the meteoric rise of Udhayanidhi Stalin in the DMK, as youngsters close to him are walking away with plum party posts

- S Kumaresan

The old must make way for the new. This mantra may hold good in the corporate world or in a sporting arena, but not quite in politics. When there’s an element of dynasty politics involved, the equation gets more complex, as it has in the case of the DMK. The meteoric rise of the party’s youth wing secretary Udhayanidhi Stalin has become a subject of debate among cadres and second-rung leaders. Frustrated, a couple of leaders from the party have already shed their deep yellow shawls in return for a shade tad different — saffron.

The story goes that the DMK’s former deputy general secretary VP Duraisamy had to “plead” with Udhayanidhi for a ticket to the Rajya Sabha despite being a veteran. Met with dejection, he jumped ship to the BJP. Now, it’s the turn of four-time Thousand Lights MLA Ku Ka Selvam. He says it was Udhayanidhi who hampered his prospects of becoming district secretary for the Chennai West unit of the party. Selvam claims the party is now under Udhayanidhi’s control.

No snakes, only ladders

Over the last two years, Udhayanidhi’s growth has made many seniors insecure. His presence became visible after he was made the party’s youth wing chief — a post held by his father MK Stalin for the longest time. Before that, he was the managing director of the party mouth piece - Murasoli. The grouch is that even his father Stalin had to work his way up the ladder to become the party president. Udhayanidhi, on the other hand, got it on a platter.