Dynasty comes first, not merit?

Udayanidhi Stalin, son of the Tamil Nadu CM was anointed Deputy CM and sworn in on Sunday. It confirms the number two position for him in the DMK hierarchy. And there will be little scope for disagreement that he is the heir to the topmost position if the seat were to fall vacant anytime. The 47-year old actor-turned-politician was sworn in as the 71-year old CM’s deputy. For the young man, it is a promotion from a junior minister looking after Sports and Youth Affairs to Minister for Development and Planning, a portfolio worth something if one were to be counted among the worthies.

The ease with which the former leader of the youth wing of DMK has climbed up ladder jumping several rungs, confirms Prime Minister Modi’s charge that dynastic links rather than merit are the foremost consideration for regional parties. Stalin himself being the successor of his redoubtable father M. Karunanidhi, has ensured that there is no digression from the path set by the grand patriarch, notwithstanding party’s roots in Dravidian ideology. Udayanidhi’s promotion must have come at the cost of ignoring claims of seniority and trampling down of ambitions of several senior leaders in the party.

It will be interesting to see if the party is left with any conscientious leaders or will surrender to the dictates of the High Command, which in the case of parties in Tamil land is mostly the man at the apex.