Ninety-two-year-old M Karunanidhi, president of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), will contest the Tamil Nadu state assembly elections scheduled on 16 May from the Tiruvarur constituency for the second time.
Karunanidhi, who holds the record for winning all elections since 1957, was elected to the state assembly from the Tiruvarur constituency in 2011. The DMK patriarch’s native place Tirukuvalai is close to the constituency.
The wheelchair-bound Karunanidhi will also campaign statewide against the advice of his personal doctors not to travel extensively considering his age. It is said that a special campaign vehicle will be arranged for Karunanidhi to cover the entire state during the scorching summer. The nonagenarian will most likely campaign for the DMK-alliance from mid-April.
The five-time chief minister continues to posses relentless ambition. He recently travelled to Tirukuvalai to open new classrooms at his alma mater. “Only I can realise how happy am I to visit this place after a long gap. At the same time, I am worried that my mother is not alive to hear all the praises being showered on me,” Karunanidhi said after inaugrating the classrooms.
DMK received a death blow during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. In fact, given the current political scenario allegations, both DMK and Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK may find the ensuing assembly polls a tough nut to crack.
