Even though PMK supremo Dr S Ramdoss did not openly mention the chief ministership of Pondicherry, it is known he wants the office for his son. In return for garnering his Vaaniyar community's votes for the AIADMK, of course. But the twist in the story lies in the aspirations of a party on its deathbed, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee.

With the PMK's entry into the AIADMK front, the Congress has moved closer to the grave in the southern state. It is evident from the way AIADMK leader Jayalalitha accepted the PMK into her fold that she cared a damn about the Congress. The Congress is emotional about Rajiv Gandhi's assassination. However hard the Congress tries, it will find it difficult to face the electorate if it aligns with the PMK, which actively supports the LTTE.

Another aspect of the Tamil political scenario is G K Moopanar's indecisiveness. Some Tamil Maanila Congress workers have grown weary of their leader's waiting game. Almost daily, Moopanar says he will produce an electoral strategy, then he falls silent. He has no problem with the PMK, but Jayalalitha insulted the TMC, offering it less than 30 seats for the election.

The ruling DMK was magnanimous in giving the TMC 40 seats in the 1996 assembly election. Moopanar's dilemma is in accepting less than 30 seats and getting humiliated in the process. However hard the TMC bargained, Jayalalitha has not budged.

In the meanwhile, the DMK invited the TMC to join its front, even offering the party 40 seats. Moopanar's dilemma now acquires another dimension. How can he be part of an alliance that has the Bharatiya Janata Party in it?

As Moopanar ponders, former Union finance minister P Chidambaram -- who had almost withdrawn from the fray after the TMC's negotiations with the AIADMK -- announced that 'the party should be guided by certain objectives and a code of conduct.' He said the TMC had three options; an alliance with the AIADMK, an alliance with the DMK or forming a Third Front. He also wanted the party to bargain for at least 50 seats from the AIADMK.

After the disastrous (their faces were more eloquent than what they said) meeting Congress leaders Pranab Mukherjee and Ghulam Nabi Azad had with Jayalalitha on Monday, it is becoming clear that a third front could emerge in Tamil Nadu. Jayalalitha humiliated the Congress, offering it just 9 assembly seats. Now, the only option before Moopanar and the Congress is to form a Third Front.

As Moopanar continues to reflect on his options, his party colleague Jayanti Natarajan frequently calls at 10, Janpath, Congress president Sonia Gandhi's Delhi bungalow. DMK leader and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi would be happiest with the formation of a Third Front. A three-cornered contest would, after all, be advantageous for the DMK-led front at the hustings.

Design: Lynette Menezes

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