The Politics Of Corruption: 2G Tears UPA II Apart

Who leaked the Niira Radia tapes? Suspicion has split the UPA Government. The truth could destroy it. The leaks have inflicted more damage on the Government than two years of Opposition accusations about the length and breadth of corruption in the spectrum allocations of 2007. They prove the perpetuation of a systematic and systemic fraud with the DMK at its vortex.

Man In The Muddle: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

The leaks could have come from two possible sources: the home or finance ministry. Since the highly selective leaks are Tamil-centric, the finger of suspicion moves towards the home ministry. The revelations could ensure the defeat of a once-impregnable DMK in the Assembly elections of 2011.

The Congress stands to gain from the DMK's decline. The Congress vote-share has been steadily increasing in Tamil Nadu as voters get fed up with both the DMK and AIADMK. If the Congress is able to increase its vote-share from around 15 per cent of the last election to about 20 per cent in the next Assembly polls, it will become a major player in a non-Dravidian, "third force" coalition.

The persons who stand to gain the most from such an outcome are Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram who control the party in Tamil Nadu. Karti's posters are already pasted all over Chennai.