In what is a pointer to the shape of electoral campaign to come, the DMK on Tuesday kicked off a huge advertisement war with an ad mocking chief minister J Jayalalithaa, questioning her aloofness and absence among people when they really needed her.
The advertisement said that in the five years, You would have seen the chief minister, on stickers, on banners or on TV and questioned the people if they had seen her directly.
This advertisement, released in the form of a poster by people close to the DMK in major dailies across Tamil Nadu, costing some Rs 18 crore according to industry sources, evoked a sharp response from the AIADMK, which unleased a similar stinging poster on watsapp questioning DMK chief M Karunanidhi’s preoccupation with marriage ceremonies, functions related film actresses but never in assembly raising peoples issues.
As election approaches, with high stakes for the two Dravidian parties and other smaller players queering the pitch with their respective going solo stances, the war of words is only going to get shriller.
The DMK ad was pungent and sharp in questioning the style of functioning of the AIADMK supremo and highlighting the failure of the government. “Let us end this and let the sun rise,” the advertisement said.
On the eve of Jayalalithaa’s 68th birthday, the DMK’s “birthday gift” to her was served an equally pungent “Return Gift” by the IT wing of the AIADMK.
On a message circulated on watsapp, the AIADMK hit out against Karunanidhi in a tit for tat response.
Its message read, “In these five years you would have seen Karunanidhi at marriage parties of actresses; you would have seen him at cultural festivals; you would have seen him in the (Kalaignar TV run reality show) Maanada Mayilada. But have you seen him in the Assembly, at least have you seen him in the Thiruvarur constituency, you Urad Dhal.”
“What man, why are you doing like this. Let DMK end. Let Tamil Nadu see the dawn,” the AIADMK watsapp message said.