‘Will support party that cares for nature’

Anti-nuclear activist S P Udayakumar was one of the chief coordinators of the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) and spearheaded the protests against the Kudankulam nuclear power plants. He joined Aam Admi Party but broke away from it and launched a new party named ‘Pachai Tamilagam Party’. He unsuccessfully contested from Kanniyakumari constituency in 2014 Lok Sabha election and then from Radhapuram constituency in 2016 State Assembly election. Udayakumar speaks to DT Next on his electoral stand and his support to parties in the upcoming general elections. Touching up on activism in the State, he also highlights the plight of activists and why activists are not able to get a foothold in Tamil Nadu politics.

This election is more about the party that should not win than about the party that should win. In this election, the fascist alliance led by BJP and AIADMK should be defeated. We are not concerned as to who the winner is. I have asked the party cadres to work against BJP-AIADMK alliance and to make sure that they are defeated across the State.

Our party is not supporting DMK-Congress alliance, too, as both the alliances are on the same page when it comes to environment issues. Both the alliances are in favour of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) and both wanted additional power from nuclear power stations from the State.

AMMK has not yet released its election manifesto. We have to wait for its manifesto to be released and then decide whether to support it or not.

It is true that activists could not win the support of masses when it comes to election because people largely vote for the parties rather than candidates. For several years, people have been voting for their favourite parties and they do not want to change the trend. As far as elections are considered, money matters more than the candidates, and parties pump in funds to make sure their candidates emerge victorious. Activists contest with the support of people and so could not win the election.

State does not want people to protest and instead want to blindly accept their policies and projects. It is true that there is no safety for activists in Tamil Nadu and the state itself is involved in maligning the character of activists. At a time when Mugilan is missing, the State government is spreading rumours that he had extramarital affairs. We are living in a society where people do not question the integrity of politicians, but question the personal characters of activists. There is no doubt that activists should maintain high integrity in their public or else there will be no difference between them and the politicians. But that does not mean that the state can malign our characters.

Yes, the party is silent for some time now. But we are continuously meeting people on environmental issues. We have decided to create future political leaders, who will be highly sensitive to environmental issues and will work for a better society.