Is Stalin Emerging As The Strong Southern Leader?

Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin learnt much at his father’s political nursery — watching, waiting and willing to learn. That seems to have paid off. Today, Stalin is a Southern leader who cannot be brushed off as irrelevant. In fact, after winning the 2021 assembly elections with a thumping majority he has projected himself as a leader of substance. Of course, his Dravidam, North South polarity and unfettered opposition to Hindi have irked and irritated his opponents. But which politician would willingly dilute his party’s ideology for temporary gains? Even as the anti-Tamil slogan is fanned by Stalin as the major foothold for the 2026 assembly elections, he has now taken on strongly the delimitation demand and has been successful in herding the to-be-affected states and their leaders into a common corral. Stalin has seamlessly moved in as leader of this group — Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, AP, Orissa and Punjab. On March 21, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan was given a warm welcome as the first of the group when he landed in Chennai for a crucial strategy meet at the ITC Grand Chola. Senior DMK leaders Dr P Thiaga Rajan and Thamizhachi Thangapandian received him. Stalin referred to March 5 as a “Historic Day for Indian federalism” even as he projected his Joint Action Committee for fair delimitation. Stalin clearly knows which buttons are to be pushed at the right time.