Moving into campaign mode for the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections scheduled for 2021, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder Kamal Haasan on Friday announced the party’s vision, which includes financial compensation for housewives, support to create at least five lakh small entrepreneurs, and a crackdown on corruption that will generate additional finances to meet social goals.
Describing the philosophy as one of a ‘centrist Enterprise Economy,’ the 65-year-old actor-turned-politician said this would eliminate ‘favouritism based on caste, religion and left/right ideologies.’ Pursuing this would need leadership with integrity and clarity that went beyond “family politics,” which his party thought he could provide, and Tamil Nadu could aspire to be a “$1 trillion” economy, he proposed.
Talks with Rajini
In an hour-long interaction with the media in Chennai, Mr. Haasan said there was scope for discussions with actor Rajinikanth, who is aspiring to take the political plunge.
“He and I have been speaking for the development of Tamil Nadu. It is possible that on some issues we have policy differences, but his comments in recent days appear to be non-partisan and in the interests of the State and country,” Mr. Haasan said.
“We believe all those who feel such a commonality of goals will come together. But let us cross the bridge when we come to it,” he added on possible electoral alliances, which “can be considered if necessary.”
Re-imagining TN
On his vision document titled “Re-imagining ‘Thamizh’ Nadu”, he said widespread corruption in the State was leaking enormous revenue, and curbing just this one factor would save 40% revenue and help implement pro-people schemes.
Conditions in the State were so dismal that industrialists were unwilling to invest, while those who had already set up units felt suffocated, Mr. Haasan said, pointing out that 50 big industrialists could speed up the economy, but so could five lakh small entrepreneurs whom the MNM would support.
Alliance with the people
Asked if forming an alliance without the Dravidian parties was feasible in Tamil Nadu, he argued that people would respond on the basis of actual work, and the MNM relied on the performance factor. “The process of forming a wonderful alliance has already begun with the people of Tamil Nadu,” he said.
The veteran thespian said the contribution of women to the economy was not appreciated, and they were engaged in economic production from home. Financially compensating them would not be a “freebie”, and there was a need to move away from “mere welfare and electoral politics.”
Slide in indicators
Deploring the slide in Tamil Nadu’s indices, the MNM leader said the high-potential State had unemployment of 6.2%, accounted for only 0.79% of total investments across the country at 12th position, besides coming in at a low 15th rank in the Ease of Doing Business index. The NITI Aayog had noted that the State had slipped sharply in the health index ranking, from 3rd in 2015-16 to 9th position in 2017-18. Maharashtra was forging ahead, although Tamil Nadu could outpace it easily, he said.
Primacy to agriculture was a core plank for the MNM, and it could claim credit for being the party that first sought the status of a protected agriculture zone for the Cauvery Delta, Mr Haasan said. “They [the government] waited till everyone forgot who asked for the status, before declaring it,” he added.
