The Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC), which still props up the DMK in Pondicherry is all set to withdraw support. Enough hints have come from the TMC leaders, who are about to launch statewide protests against the DMK government on the issue of the diesel price hike.

In fact, last week, the TMC's Political Affairs Committee decided to snap links with its erstwhile ally. Once that happens, the nine-member DMK will be left high and dry in Pondicherry without the support of the eight TMC MLAs in a house of 30.

What happens in Pondicherry could be a test case for political realignments not only in Tamil Nadu but also in the entire south. The TMC is believed to be in touch with the Congress about forming an alternative government in the Union Territory on the Maharashtra model. And there's little doubt that the AIADMK will put pressure on the Congress to be partof this new arrangement. The TMC is not likely to hold out and invite the odium of forcing an election there.

The Congress has far from severed its links with the AIADMK. Last weekend, many in the CWC blamed the Congress' alliances with the AIDMK and the RJD for its debacle. Others made a case for a return to the Pachmarhi resolution.

However, when a contingent of AIADMK MPs called on Sonia Gandhi, she assured them that the Congress-AIADMK alliance would continue. The Tuesday walkout in the Lok Sabha over the Bofors issue was led by AIADMK members. In the Rajya Sabha, too, the AIADMK and the TMC were the only parties, which came out in support of the Congress' stand on removing Rajiv Gandhi's name from the Bofors chargesheet.

Even as the DMK and its allies were celebrating their victory in the Lok Sabha elections, and the TMC was conducting a post mortem into its defeat, Jayalalitha had started planning for the Assembly polls which are due in Tamil Nadu in early 2001.