The founder of PMK, S Ramadss and his son Anbumani, are in Loggerheads
The inheritance policy is not easy, as two children are realizing in Tamil Nadu’s policy. Anbumani Ramadss, 56, is locked in a battle of power with his father and the founder of PMK, S Ramadss, 85 years old. Durai Vaiko, 53, feels helpless when his father and founder of MDMK, Vaiko, 80, is not able to detain his son at the party.
In PMK, differences have been brewing for years. A secret was a secret that Anbumani had a disagreement with his father in some of the electoral alliances and the exchange of seats in the past. Everything went at the forefront at the meeting of the General Council of the party on December 28, 2024, when Ramadss announced the appointment of his grandson P Makundan as president of the Youth Wing of the party. Anbumani opposed, saying that Mukundan had recently joined the party. Ramadss puts his foot down. “I founded this party,” he replied, strong and clear through the microphone, “what I say should be followed, do you understand?”
This was the Ramadss who, three decades ago, had said that none of his family members would enter politics. But then, why should the youngest generation suffer from the promises of one older? Before the meeting of the PMK general agency on May 28, 2022, this column had supported the appointment of Anbumani as president of the party, citing five reasons. Here was the fifth: “Anbumani can well draw a new path for PMK. This will also be his challenge.” Anbumani faces that challenge as Ramadss has named himself the founding president (another deviation from his promise of not occupying any position in the party).
Durai, who resigned and backed up in 24 hours his resignation as MDMK main secretary, has a slightly different problem in his hand. Durai’s appointment as secretary of the party headquarters in March 2022 with protest from some higher officials. Now Durai believes that the general secretary of the party, Mallai Sathya, is trying to highlight it for first position. Last week, when the MDMK Trichy district unit approved a demanding removal resolution of Sathya from the game post, Vaiko defended himself.
This made it clear to Durai that his father cannot release Sathya, who remained one of Vaiko’s firm supporters who had just when older people like Ramacandran and L Goanesan rebelled and were removed from the party in 2007.
Political inheritance is our national hobby. From Cashmira to Kerala, their sons, and, in some cases, the daughters, have tasks on the reins of their parents’ party (mother, in the case of the Nehru family that has the history of spending the witness four generations). Most of them have encountered internal agitation, only a tip or that had caught public attention.
Business and politics are not very different when it comes to inheritance between. The duration of succession planning could begin and appear when generational differences and personality conflicts overcome love, loyalty and mutual respect. If it is not resolved quickly, this could threaten the institution that the Senior had built, and the Junior tries to grow in his own way.
The observation of the Commercial Advisor Enrique Moriano applies to Indian political families when he says that parents often find it difficult to let the reins they have had for years, while the children are eager to prove their worth and leave their mark. “This struggle for power can manifest in the confrontation of management styles and decision -making approaches,” says Soriano.
Nor is there an easy cure for such conflict in politics. Once the son takes over, the father must let him go and be, in the best case, a separate advisor. For his part, the son must listen, or pretend to listen, to the father if the latter disconnects advise. That is easier to say it. The only solution to conflict is the fear of mutual loss. And that happens only when the party, unlike PMK and MDMK, is a favorite for power. Are they listening to MK Stalin and Udhayanidhi?
Discharge of responsibility
The opinions expressed above are the author’s own.
End of the article