Chennai: Eyeing a bigger role in national level politics in coming years, AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa on Friday asked partymen to get ready for next Lok Sabha polls, saying the party could achieve a pivotal position to even decide the next Prime Minister.
"Time is ripe for us to strengthen our position at the national politics and become a power to decide the next Prime Minister. It is certain that we will be in the next ministry," she said as she accused the UPA of meting out "step-motherly" treatment to Tamil Nadu. Addressing partymen at AIADMK`s top decision-making body General Council, she recalled the installation of NDA government headed by A B Vajpayee in 1998 and said, "Our contribution in that is immeasurable."
Jayalalithaa, who was part of the third front comprising the Left and regional parties in the last Lok Sabha polls, said the time for her party to expand beyond the political boundaries of Tamil Nadu and step into national level was "fast approaching".
Today`s meeting of the general council was the first after Jayalalithaa led her party to a landslide victory, unseating the DMK from power in the April assembly polls.
Asking partymen not to be complacent with the victory in the Assembly and civic polls, she asked them to "prepare for next victory" - a reference to the Parliamentary polls.
Charging the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre with showing "step-motherly attitude and being biased against Tamil Nadu," she said with the AIADMK gaining significant rank in national politics, the party "will be at the helm of decision-making." "In such a situation we can make decisions without affecting national integration and at the same time not compromising on Tamil Nadu`s rights," Jayalalithaa said in an apparent reference to inter-state disputes including Mullaperiyar dam row with Kerala.
"If we achieve that golden era, we don`t need to be in a position to plead for our rights over water and its conservation," she said.
Warning partymen against having any truck with expelled members, apparently referring to her former close aide Sasikala and her family members who were shown the door recently, Jayalalithaa said she would not take it lightly.
Sasikala, her husband K Natarajan and scores of their relatives were removed from AIADMK amid reports that they were trying to emerge as a parallel power centre to Jayalalithaa.
"Expelled members who cast aspersions on the party leadership will not be forgiven. Not only that, those partymen who believe in such persons` words and act accordingly will also be not spared," she warned.
Alleging that the DMK regime was thrown out because of the 2G spectrum scandal and other issues, Jayalalithaa said people had given the mandate for her party to deliver a `clean administration and governance.`
By remaining clean and unblemished, none could snatch away power from her party, she said urging the partymen to work for delivering all welfare measures initiated by her government. She said her government was facing a `gigantic task` of creating a golden era for the people, after inheriting a financial system left in a shambles by the previous DMK regime and facing the Centre`s ?step-motherly and biased attitude". Charging her predecessor DMK government with being involved in lavish and unnecessary spending of tax payers money, on various events and conferences, she urged her partymen not to repeat the same and preached simplicity.
PTI