END GAME : Mannargudi Mafia.

The long standing clout enjoyed by the Mannargudi Mafia led by her aide and close confidante Sasikala and her empire is falling apart or it appears to be... as whispers doing rounds in Poes Garden circles are to be believed...that Amma has decided enough is enough and is cracking the whip.

Ever since the AIADMK government came to power it was this Mafia gang fondly known as "CM 2" in bureaucratic circles and "Mannargudi Mafia" in political circles that took decisions on all important matters relating to State administration. Be it postings of IAS, IPS & IFS officers or awarding of contracts for important projects or taking important policy decisions...  MM’s was the final word.   The mere mention about the Mannargudi Mafia sent shivers down the spine of many Ministers and bureaucrats who had no other choice but to abide by their rules.  The appointment of T.Rajendran,IPS as the Additional DGP for the all important intelligence wing, in spite of his clout in the previous DMK regime itself is an example of the power wielded by the MM in important matters.  Due to the coveted posting he got, T.Rajendran was more loyal to Sasikala and her husband Natarajan than to the Chief Minister of the State, say sources in khakhi.  But, Rajendran’s luck ran out one day and he was shown the door.

Whispers doing rounds in both political and bureaucratic circles is that...key officers in the CM circle like CM’s secretary Ram Mohana Rao, Deputy Secretary Ramalingam and Personal Security Officer of CM Thirumalaichamy were Sasikala’s nominees and they were running errands for Sasikala ever since Amma assumed charge as Chief Minister. Panneerselvam, a retired IAS officer was inducted in the present administration as an Officer on Special Duty and sources say he acted as a ‘wheeler dealer’ for Chinnamma. The buzz is that Deputy Superintendent of Police Thirumalaichamy who is the PSO had recently gone to Tirunelveli to complete a ‘katta panchayat’ on behalf of Chinnamma.  Thirumalaichamy's fairy tales seems to be the hot topic that's being debated in police circles...sources say recently he was brought under the intelligence scanner and finally the cat was out of the bag. 
 

Pon. Manickavel, whose exit from intelligence was discussed in detail in these columns was also another nominee of Chinnamma and was executing many operations as per the diktat of Chinnamma and her better half Natarajan.  The clout of the MM was so effective that even Pon. Manickavel’s successor is now believed to be a nominee of Chinnamma.  Sasikala who knew the working of the administration and the importance of intelligence wing from the early nineties is very keen on keeping a tab on the nerve center by having her loyalists inside the state’s intelligence wing. Its a known fact that DGP Ramanujam, being a shrewd officer is not pliable to Sasikala and her antics, whom he considers as an extra-constitutional authority.  Knowing fully well about the reputation of Ramanujam and the kind of respect he enjoys with the Chief Minister, Sasikala first planted T.Rajendran, then Pon.Manickavel and now its Thamaraikannan to have a grip on the intelligence wing.

With a hold on intelligence wing, it was not only Sasikala who had access to the paraphernalia of the intelligence wing, but it was also M.Natarajan, M.Ramachandran, Ravanan, Palanivelu, MIDAS Mohan, Kulothungan, Diwakaran, Dinakaran and his wife Anuradha, and the list goes on. As their game plan was clear.   Ministers, Police Officers and Bureaucrats were asked to take a clear stand...Either they are at the disposal of Mannargudi Mafia or rot in dummy posts. 

Except the top cop Ramanujam and the Chief Secretary all others were crawling before the MM cartel seeking favours...and the Mafia were calling the shots. Though Jayalalitha had an inclination of the catastrophic effect of the MM cartel in her administration, for reasons best known to her, she allowed the rule of the MM cartel to an extent which appears to be coming to an end. Only at the time of shifting T.Rajendran from intelligence wing, did Jayalalitha realize the grave the MM cartel is digging for her.   Jayalalitha came to know about the evil designs of MM cartel to capture power in the state following  the developments in the Bengaluru Special Court in her assets case.   Jayalalitha was informed about the diabolical designs of the MM cartel to capture power in the even of Jayalalitha getting convicted.   In fact the MM cartel went to the extent of pulling strings to see that Jaya’s assets case ends up in conviction.

But all this started...after Cho Ramasamy who is believed to be as Amma's political advisor met her last week and apprised about the activities of MM cartel. In fact whispers doing rounds in the AIADMK is that Cho Ramasamy's name was also constantly being used by some of the key team members of Mannargudi Mafia... the MM cartel’s parallel administration and the collection spree of the members were brought to her notice and she was cautioned that if there is no end to such activities it may result in further trouble for her. This was after a huge lobby of powerful businessmen and others approached Cho Ramasamy and expressed their concern over the evil designs of "M" Mafia.

Poes Garden sources say when Jayalalitha counter checked this information with the top cop,  he poured out his heart about the entire happenings in the past 5 months. An angry and highly irritated Jayalalitha decided to crack the whip and the first casualty was Officer on Special Duty Panneer Selvam.  Following his sacking, CM’s PSO Thirumalai Samy was also shifted and V.Balasubramanian, Asst. Commissioner of Police, Anna Nagar is posted in his place. Sources tell whispers that Jayalalitha had instructed the top cop Ramanujam to make a thorough assessment and to identify the MM cartel loyalists in all circles.  As of now the identified bureaucrats and officers are likely to be booted out in the coming days is the buzz in the corridors of Fort St George.

 
Honest officers who were fuming about the rule of the MM cartel are heaving a sigh of relief. Whispers doing rounds is that... in the coming week a cabinet re-shuffle – to weed out MM nominees – and a huge shuffle in IAS and IPS cadre is on the cards.

Sources say from Poes Garden to Fort St George and the local Tenyampet police station Sasikala's loyalists were carefully planted. However, analysts who are observing the relationship between Jayalalitha and Sasikala for a long time are skeptical about the moves.   They say, such tiffs between Jaya and Sasikala are quite common and Sasikala has a knack of patching up with Jayalalitha after the tiff, they say. Many squabbles between the two had cropped up in the past and they always end up in truce. 

But whether Jayalalitha would permanently reign in Sasikala and her coterie and provide a better administration to the people who voted her to power is anybody’s guess.