Kumari Anandan's 'decision' tomorrow

By Our Staff Reporter

VELLORE, MARCH 3.The former TNCC (I) president, Mr. Kumari Anandan told newspersons here on Saturday that he would announce his `decision' (on the revival of the Gandhi Kamaraj National Congress) based on the views of the party workers at Chennai on March 5.

Mr. Kumari Anandan who was here as part of his district-wise `thondargal dharisanam' (meeting with party workers) said that wherever he went, the party workers were critical of the fact that there was not even one person hailing from Tamil Nadu in the five-member committee constituted by the AICC to hold alliance talks with the AIADMK. In this connection, he said that none in the TNCC including himself had the courage of Kamaraj to oppose the tendency of the AICC to dictate terms to the TNCC on matters concerning the state party affairs.

Mr. Kumari Anandan said that when the AICC led by Mr. P.V. Narasimha Rao decided that the Congress would ally with the AIADMK in the 1996 elections going against the views expressed by the party rank and file, he told the AICC leadership that the Congress would not get even one seat in alliance with the AIADMK. Though the ministers and other Congress leaders from Tamil Nadu represented to Mr. Narasimha Rao the views of the party rank and file that the Congress should not ally with the AIADMK, Mr.Rao failed to accept their view.`Though we knew that the decision was against the wishes of the party workers, we decided to abide by the AICC decision on alliance with a heavy heart,' he said.

The former TNCC president refused to answer a direct question on whether he was going to revive the Gandhi Kamaraj National Congress or not.

Mr.Kumari Anandan said that the freedom fighters whom he met in the districts had expressed the wish that the state government should rescind its decision to reduce by half the freedom fighter's pension of Rs. 3000 when it became payable to the widow on the death of the freedom fighter.

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