M K Stalin coronated as DMK Chief
The DMK general council elected M K Stalin the party president on Tuesday amid a chorus of support that has drowned the lone voice of dissent raised by his older brother M K Alagiri. S Duraimurugan is the new treasurer.
While Karunanidhi struggled to become a tall leader over a period of time, Stalin’s journey in politics has been quite different. Having started campaigning for his father at the age of 14, he slowly emerged from the shadows of his larger-than-life father. It was Karunanidhi who created that space for Stalin in the DMK.
Stalin was arrested under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act during the Emergency in 1977. Twelve years later, he won a seat in the 1989 Assembly elections, but lost the snap polls two years later. Since then, he has never had to face defeat in the Assembly elections.
Stalin’s administrative mettle was proven when he was the Chennai Mayor in 1996. This is when he reinvented himself and focussed on modernising the administration.
