Bangalore: Ideally, one can't quote Hindi film producer Ram Gopal Verma to explain anything. He is notorious for his 'foot in mouth' tweets. For a change, he has tweeted something logical.
He said, "New capital of Tamil Nadu is Bangalore and the secretariat is Parappana Agrahara." It makes some sense. After their supreme leader J Jayalalithaa was convicted and sent to serve her four year sentencing at the Bangalore Central Jail in Parappana Agrahara, the entire Tamil Nadu government has shifted to the jail premises.
New Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and his senior cabinet colleagues and top officials are camping in Bangalore to meet Amma to discuss certain issues and take orders.
In the last five days, Panneerselvam has spent three days in Bangalore. Many of his cabinet colleagues are camping in Bangalore hoping that Amma will get the bail soon. Many top officials of the government are also camping in Bangalore to assist the government.
Jayalalithaa's personal staff has turned its vehicles into a temporary office outside the central jail. They have been waiting outside the jail since last Saturday.
Hundreds of AIADMK MLAs are also making a beeline to the jail to catch a glimpse of Amma. Ask any AIADMK leader, you get the same answer "getting Amma out of jail is our top priority. Everything else can wait".
Most of the hotels near the jail are full to the capacity with Amma supporters from Tamil Nadu. Ministers and other top leaders have booked rooms at several top hotels in South Bangalore.
Somebody jokingly said, "Bangalore is now witnessing a tourism boom. Amma tourism boom."
Since the Karnataka High Court has posted the bail application hearing to next Tuesday and the courts are closed till next Monday on the account of Dasara and Gandhi Jayanthi, Jayalalithaa will have to spend her time at the jail till next week.
Only if she gets bail, she can walk out of the jail. But, she is no longer an accused. She is now a convict. It is not so easy for the convicts to secure release on bail. Even Lalu Prasad Yadav had to spend almost three months at Ranchi jail before securing the bail. The Chautalas of Haryana are in and out of jail after they were convicted.
The chances of Jayalalithaa not getting an early bail has caused a huge worry to the AIADMK cadre. The longer Amma stays inside, the more the Tamil Nadu administration will suffer.
The twice accidental chief minister Panneerselvam does not have the courage and powers to take independent decisions regarding the state matters. He will have to seek Amma's permission for everything. Since she is a convict, it won't be so easy for him to consult her whenever he wants. Running Tamil Nadu from Bangalore Central Jail by using a remote control is not going to be an easy thing for Jayalalithaa.
Only if she manages the bail, she can run the state from her house. The bail won't allow her to get the chief ministership back. She can't even contest in the elections. Only if the sentencing is suspended, she has a chance.
The 'stop-gap' arrangement under the leadership of Pannerselvam is likely to continue for a long time, unlike the previous occasion which lasted for just six months between 2001 and 2002.
Jayalalithaa is very unpredictable and can take any decision anytime. Everybody in the AIADMK knows that the party won't survive without Amma and the possibility of ignoring her and them consolidating their position is remote.
Jayalalithaa's jailing in Bangalore is a very tricky issue for Karnataka. Karnataka has nothing to do with the case. The Supreme Court had shifted the case out of Tamil Nadu to ensure a fair trial. The Karnataka government claims that it is just following the Supreme Court orders and reluctantly 'hosting' Jayalalithaa at the central jail.
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