Reporter’s Diary: Jagan Reddy’s aide oversees DMK’s pact with I-PAC

It required a push from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh to convince the DMK to offer poll strategising to the external player. So much so that a representative of Andhra Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy had come to the city when a DMK organising secretary and an executive of I-PAC put pen to paper here last week. 

In fact, Jagan had personally vouched for the professional calibre of the poll strategist from Bihar, who was instrumental in helping him defeat the old horse, Chandrababu Naidu. Buoyed by his success, Jagan is understood to have advised Stalin to engage I-PAC when the latter had attended his swearing-in ceremony months ago. 

DMK insiders privy to the deal felt that it was Andhra’s turn to return the favour to DMK. A few decades ago, it was the DMK which had inspired actor NT Rama Rao to float his own party, an event which changed the course of political history in the neighbouring State. 

When the matinee idol developed the idea of floating Telugu Desam Party, he had approached his friend Arcot N Veerasamy to help them fulfil legal formalities. A benevolent DMK president M Karunanidhi had instantly acceded to his deputy’s request and helped Rama Rao go about drafting the party by law then.