CHENNAI: In an effort to strengthen his Makkal Needhi Maiam ahead of the 2021 Tamil Nadu assembly elections, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan on Wednesday announced new general secretaries and zonal heads to steer the his outfit at the grassroots level.
Haasan, who led his fledgling MNM to a vote share of 3.72 per cent in the recent Lok Sabha elections, renamed the incumbent general secretary A Arunachalam as general secretary for coordination "to further strengthen the party at the booth level in all constituencies across Tamil Nadu."
According to an MNM release, retired IPS official A G Maurya is the general secretary for north and east region, and former IAS official R Rangarajan will be general secretary for propaganda, both new positions.
Senior functionary V Umadevi will be the general secretary for party wings and retired IAS official Basheer Ahamed will be general secretary for the president's office, an MNM release said.
A new general secretary is expected to be named soon to head the party units in the state's south and western areas and for now, this region will be taken care of by the party president's office, according to party sources.
For administrative convenience of party work, the state will be divided into eight zones of Chennai, Kancheepuram, Salem, Villupuram, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Madurai and Tirunelveli, Haasan said in the release.
One zonal-in-charge to take care of organisation related tasks and another for coordination purposes will be appointed for each zone, he said.
R Mahendran and A Chandrasekar will continue to function in their current posts as the Vice President and Treasurer respectively.
"I am confident that the newly appointed general secretaries shall work towards making our vision a reality and contribute towards a better Tamil Nadu. I wish them all the best in all their endeavours," Haasan said.
The actor turned politician said his party contested the recent elections when it was just 14 months old on the strength of its ideals and people "gave the party an overwhelming response."
"I now want to ensure an even bigger success for the party in the 2021 assembly elections and form a government which shall truly be for the people," he said adding the new initiative will help achieve it.
Launched in February 2018, Makkal Needhi Maiam was formed to "serve as a party that brings back the lost ethos of Tamil Nadu polity and strives for the welfare of all sections of people," he said.