Puducherry jolt for BJP as NR Congress set to dump it

Despite its systematic and meticulous machinations in downing the Congress in the former French colony, perhaps with a view to turning it into a gateway to the South, the BJP has received a big jolt in Puducherry. N. Rangasamy of the NR Congress has sent out a subtle message that he would be going it alone in the April 6 elections.

Though the NR Congress played along with the BJP in the political game to topple the previous Congress government led by V. Narayansamy, the party founder Rangasamy is now having second thoughts on continuing with the BJP, particularly after he visited the tomb of Appa Paithiyam Swamy, his spiritual guru, near Salem.

Rangasamy, who has acknowledged that his life revolved around Appa Paithiswamy’s guidance in the past, would not take any decision without consulting the guru when he was alive. After the swamy attained Samadhi near Salem in 2000, the 70-yearold bachelor politician visits the tomb to get directions through ‘telepathic message’ that he claims to get while meditating there.

The ground reality, too, is that his party would lose its sizable vote bank if it was to openly cavort with the BJP.

That he was part of the dirty games the BJP played to pull down the democratically elected Congress government itself has earned a bad name for him among the people of the Union Territory.

So after getting the guru’s signal while meditating at the tomb, Rangasamy called for a meeting of his erstwhile MLAs at a hotel to chalk out the future plan of action. It is believed that he would announce formally his disassociation with the BJP soon.

Such a decision would seriously impact the schemes of BJP, which was apparently aiming at grabbing power in league with NR Congress and AIADMK and then install its own candidate as the Chief Minister.