Sarath Kumar calls on CM

CHENNAI: Raising speculation about yet another political alignment, actor Sarath Kumar and his actor-wife Radhika called on Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi at his residence on Wednesday. Indications are that Sarath's Akhila Indiya Samathuva Makkal Katchi (AISMK) is likely to align with the DMK-led United Progressive Alliance in the coming general elections.
Sarath downplayed the meeting, saying, "My wife and I called on Kalaignar, whom I treat like a fatherly person and also call appa (dad), only to seek his blessings on my birthday.One should not attribute any political significance to it."
Asked about his plans, he said, "In politics, unless you are in power, it makes no sense, but as of now I am not a power centre to dictate terms. Hence, I have to take cautious steps without repeating earlier mistakes. I can only say whatever I do will have a central connect. It is too early to talk about an alliance." He ruled out the possibility of disbanding AISMK or merging it with any other party.
Sarath has had a chequered political career.He campaigned for the DMK-TMC combine in the 1996 general elections and Karunanidhi rewarded him with a ticket in the 1998 parliamentary election. He lost it by a slender margin. In 2002, DMK gave him a Rajya Sabha seat. However, he quit the DMK and joined AIADMK along with Radhika just before 2006 assembly elections. But Radhika was dismissed from that party in October 2006 and a month later Sarath also quit.
He floated his own party on August 31, 2007 but his political career took a beating when his party faced a humiliating defeat in the Thirumangalam assembly byelection in January 2009. Asked about the contrast between his party and that of actor Vijayakanth, which got 10.7% votes in the LS polls, Sarath said, "When Vijaykanth launched DMDK, two years earlier than my party, people were eagerly waiting for an alternative. By the time I started AISMK, people had started thinking why one more party'. That made a huge difference."