Lok Sabha elections 2024: The fall and fall of O Panneerselvam

O Panneerselvam arrives at Keelathuval village to seek votes from the Thevar community. Pic/Krishnakumar Padmanabhan

In a matter of a year, the parched and arid Ramanathapuram Lok Sabha constituency went from being rumoured to be contested by a head of state to one that is being contested by an independent candidate for the NDA. The BJP had briefly toyed with the idea of fielding PM Narendra Modi from here, but come voting day, it is isolated ex-chief minister O Panneerselvam (OPS) that the NDA cadre is busy pumping up.

Why PM skipped it?

According to sources, after floating the idea of the PM contesting from the constituency, that also contains the holy site of Rameswaram, to galvanise the party cadre and also send a message that fortress TN can be breached by saffron forces, the party did a ground reality check and decided that the grassroots was not strong enough to risk the PM's image. Hence the idea was dismissed, with leaders explaining it away by saying it was just a wish expressed by the state cadre and that the party leadership never seriously considered it.

NDA candidate O Panneerselvam arrives at Keelathuval village to seek votes from the Thevar community.

Why OPS, why now?

On the other hand, there was OPS, a leader without a party, since he was ousted from ADMK by rival Edapadi Palanisamy (EPS), another former CM of Tamil Nadu. The two had briefly joined hands to oust V K Sasikala and her nephew TTV Dhinakaran from the party following Jayalalithaa's death.

ADMK sources said second-rung leadership had lost faith in OPS due to his "short-sightedness, and lack of vision", something they claim EPS had. When OPS raised the banner of revolt against Sasikala, ADMK's current IT cell boss, Singai Ramachandran, was the first to offer support and stand by the three-time former CM. He was even the first to tweet about the move, rallying other supporters around OPS. But he, too, has been left disappointed by OPS's latter decisions.

A supporter sports the jackfruit symbol, which has been allotted to ex-CM O Panneerselvam, at Keelathuval village, in Ramanathapuram. Pics/Krishnakumar Padmanabhan

"I regret standing by that man," Ramachandran told mid-day. "He turned out to be an utterly selfish man, full of indecision."

Under EPS, the ADMK took another big decision - to ditch the BJP, following a dismal show in 2019 and negative feedback from its second-run leadership. It was also not appreciated that Annamalai went hammer and tongs at the party, despite it being an ally. The ADMK believed that the BJP was trying to cut the regional party to size and become the big brother in the alliance.

Villagers assemble and await the arrival of ex-CM O Pannerselvam at Keelathuval, Ramanathapuram, on Sunday

This forced the BJP into the hands of OPS and Dhinakaran, who is contesting as part of the NDA in OPS stronghold, Theni.

Thus, in a strange twist of fate, OPS and Dhinakaran, who were ranged against each other five years ago, are now allied with the BJP, even as they fight a decisive battle for survival Sizeable Thevar and Muslim population

Around 2 lakh Muslim votes are expected to be consolidated by the DMK ally, the Indian Union Muslim League, from which the secular alliance will build its total vote share. In 2019, Nawaz Kani, the IUML candidate, polled 44 per cent votes, with 4.7 lakh.

The BJP's idea is to transfer its sizeable support to OPS and capitalise on his Thevar identity to try and topple the INDIA candidate. The BJP had polled 32 per cent votes in 2019, with 3.4 lakh.

So, it could indeed end up being a close call in this seat, which is why the BJP is pulling all stops to help OPS.

Party president K Annamalai was here on Saturday, campaigning for OPS in the name of the PM.

"You all wanted Modi to fight from here," he said at a rally. "Modi has a special love for OPS and Ramanathapuram, which is why he has fielded him here. You will benefit if you send a former CM to Parliament, and there will be a lot of work here."

‘I will make a home here'

On Sunday OPS hit the Thevar belt with enthusiasm. Going from village to village on an open-top van, canvassing for votes, and especially focusing on the women voters.

"I know there is a water problem here, as I have had complaints from each of the six assembly constituencies that are here. If I win, I will build a treatment plant in each assembly constituency, so water supply gets better. I will fix the power cut issues by installing more transformers. Why, if you vote for me, I set up a permanent home here to solve all your issues," he said.

He then invoked Jayalalithaa, who he has in his temporary flags.

"Amma nominated me as stand-in CM thrice," he said. "She trusted me so much that I was the party treasurer for 12 years. When I took over, the party was R2 crore in arrears. But when I stepped down from the post, I had left a surplus of R256 crore in FD."

The desperation in his voice made it clear that he knows it is a do-or-die battle for him.