With the demise of Karunanidhi, a Chapter in Tamil Nadu politics comes to an end. DMK has hard core support base in Tamil Nadu, and hence, it was not surprising to see crowds flock to his funeral.
Lot of good things have been written about Karunanidhi, as people would when anyone dies. People tend to gloss over a dead mans defect, and over a period of time, the anecdotes get embellished with superlatives, taking the persona of the dead man to a higher plane.
It is true that his brand of politics gave a sense of entitlement to many downtrodden people. And no one can grudge them for it.
However, this came with a heavy price.
DMK and its parent Organization DK, were built on Anti-Brahminism, and this was at its height in late 60's and 70's. The result was the highly educated intelligent Brahmins, who are very adaptive, were forced to move out of Tamil Nadu due to bias, loss of jobs and being hounded day in and day out. This resulted in a Brain Drain, which was never quite filled by the non Brahmins to date. Any leader who willfully ensures diminishing the Human Capital cannot be called a good one by any stretch of imagination. It was quite unnecessary, as there was enough space for Brahmins and non Brahmins to co-exist in Tamil Nadu. If properly managed, the Non Brahmins would have gained a lot from the knowledge, experience and wisdom of Brahmins. In the absence of proper grooming, those who filled in turned out to be not up to the mark, and this reflected in the development of the State.
The anti-hindi agitation led by DMK and Karunanidhi, led to generations of Tamilians having a negative view of learning Hindi, which resulted in them not being in a position to seek jobs outside Tamil Nadu. This gap was beautifully exploited by Malayalis.
By highlighting the Dravidian Culture, Karunanidhi tried to create a wedge between Tamilians and other Indians, to the detriment of Tamilians. His support for LTTE, Tamil Ealam, Anti-IPKF stand has led to the current generation getting restive and hyper sensitive. Add to this, his blatant support of the Conversion Mafia, and radical islamists, we have a situation where Tamil Nadu is potentially one of the most dangerous State in India and a threat to National Security. The Church backed agitations, be it Koodankulam, or Sterlite Plant or Jallikkattu all had the tacit backing of DMK, and the people of the State will pay a price for this in the long run.
By being opportunistic with respect to alliance at the Centre, Karunanidhi, created a model of politics where ethics and principles didn't matter, and only power mattered. He was also the kingpin of Corruption. He ensured his family amassed wealth. Once he adopted this line, he lost his moral right to preach his followers to not indulge in power seeking politics or to not being corrupt. This attitude percolated down to the lowest party functionary, who made merry at common mans expense.
That, unfortunately, was his tainted legacy.
