Jallikattu protest, its violent end to impact Tamil Nadu political discourse

CHENNAI: The violent climax to Jallikattu protests across Tamil Nadu could impact the destiny of some key political players. Had it remained a peaceful agitation and ended in a ‘joyous victory’ for the campaigners, the ruling AIADMK may have reaped the benefits of chief minister O Panneerselvam ensuring an ordinance and a bill. No such luck with the bloody finale to what was widely hailed as an unprecedented struggle for Tamil pride and identity.

Who are the real beneficiaries and losers now? Would it damage the prospects of the AIADMK, already floundering in a leadership vacuum? Can the DMK ride on a possible anti-incumbency wave and turn it into a plank of identity politics? Or will the issue spawn a new breed of leaders and democratic alternatives? One thing is for sure, the Jallikattu agitation has revealed a new constituency of pro-active voters who can rise beyond party politics.

Despite the violent end to their peaceful protest, students and youngsters have realised as never before the power of mass demonstration, say observers. They predict that by the next election, either the 2019 Lok Sabha polls or the assembly poll in 2021, the impact may show. “We believe that the youth will usher in a new political era,” said late Congress leader Vazhappadi Ramamurthy’s son Kannan Ramamurthy who organized food for the Marina protesters.


The 31-year-old businessman with no political affiliation said not only would the youth turn up in large numbers to vote for elections in future, new leaders would emerge. Added filmmaker Ram Subramanian, 28, “Perhaps this is what political parties are scared of, that a new movement would be born that would wipe them out of the political scene.”

Some analysts believe that no political party would benefit electorally from these protests. “That was the case in 1967 when the DMK harvested the 1965 anti-Hindi protests that exemplified the concerns of students and the youth. Having said that, these protests are the most serious wake up call for political parties to rethink their ways,” said MGR biographer and UN official in Iraq R Kannan. “The young are saying that they have no faith in the leaders. For public good, they are ready to take matters into their own hands, if need be,” he said.

The Dravidian rivals have begun to blame each other for the violent turn that the protests took after six days of peaceful sloganeering. While the DMK blamed the state government for its ineffective handling of the protests, the AIADMK held the DMK responsible for unleashing violence against the police on Monday.

The 2019 Lok Sabha polls may be the first test of the impact of these protests on the electoral fortunes of these parties. “While the protests are historical in many ways, I believe it is too early to understand them; or read too much into them. For now, all that we can say is that the young are greatly disillusioned with the state of affairs,” said Kannan.