Modi seeking support of Tamil Nadu leader

INDIA - Prime Minister Narendra Modi is looking past the clear majority he has in India's Parliament by reaching out to a powerful state leader to partner his coalition, as he seeks to bolster support for the economic reform measures he is said to be planning.

Ms J Jayalalithaa, the chief minister of southern Tamil Nadu state, is due to meet Mr Modi today, the first time since he took office. The meeting is ostensibly to discuss issues concerning Tamil Nadu that need federal assistance.

However, officials of Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and analysts do not rule out political negotiations with Ms Jayalalithaa, who also heads her AIADMK party which emerged as the third largest in the elections with 37 MPs.

"Our fundamental principle is to work in partnership with every state and Tamil Nadu is no exception to that. The message of this government is that it is a bipartisan government," BJP spokesman Nalin Kohli told The Straits Times.

He did not commit himself on the possibilities of the BJP formally joining hands with the AIADMK but said "parties do talk to each other, and in national interest parties are bipartisan".

"Even we helped the Congress when we were in opposition. It is very rare for Parliament to be logjammed. If there is a crisis, one can always call a joint session of the two Houses," he added.

The BJP has 281 members in the Lower House of Parliament and its allies in the National Democratic Alliance have 55, taking their total to 336.

This number can go up to 338 if the party can nominate two Anglo-Indian members and secure their support in a chamber of 545 members.

However, the BJP and its allies have only around 60 seats in the 250-member Upper House of Parliament - and cannot push through laws that will allow higher foreign direct investment across sectors including insurance and pensions, tax reform as well as banking reform, among others.

India's Constitution allows a joint meeting of the two Houses to vote on a law if they cannot be approved separately.

But even in this scenario, the NDA could fall short of a majority in the combined chamber of 795 or barely cross the halfway mark, taking truant allies and abstentions into account.

Ms Jayalalithaa, with her 37 MPs in the Lower House and 10 in the Upper House, could make a major difference and ensure smooth sailing for Mr Modi's policy moves at such a joint session, analysts said.

Mr Modi and Ms Jayalalithaa were known to have cordial relations until they fell out during the election campaign and traded barbs.

The mercurial AIADMK leader later expelled a senior leader from her party for hinting in a television interview that she could join hands with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance after the elections.

The former heart-throb of Tamil cinema is also known to throw tantrums, and was responsible for toppling the BJP government back in 1999 after just 13 months in power.

However, Ms Jayalalithaa is unlikely to formally ally with the BJP now, analysts in Tamil Nadu said.

"For her, ministries in Delhi are not important," Chennai-based analyst Gnani Sankaran told The Straits Times.

"She will use her leverage and cooperate depending on how much the central government is willing to concede on Tamil Nadu's issues. She will need that to show her constituency," he added.

This article was first published on June 3, 2014.
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