CHENNAI: DMK party president MK Stalin's grip over the party is already total. It may get further cemented as he is believed to assume the powers of the party's general secretary too. Reliable sources in the party told Express that one of the important agendas of the party's general body meeting scheduled on November 10 in Chennai is this.
A senior state-level functionary privy to the matter said, "The party bylaw has a provision for the president to assume the powers of the general secretary if the general secretary was unable to perform the
duties for a considerably long period. Using this provision, Stalin will assume the powers."
The 97-year-old Anbazhagan has been keeping away from the party events for last two years due to health reasons. The last event he participated was the party's general body meeting on January 4, 2017. This was the meeting in which Stalin was appointed as the working president of the party since his father and then party president M Karunanidhi was confined to his house due to old age.
As per DMK's constitution, the general secretary is a key post and all the party's official announcements are made by the general secretary. The general secretary's approval is also a must for key decisions of the party. Anbazhagan, a longtime confidant of Karunanidhi, was one of the few outside Karunanidhi's family to hold a key post in the party.
When contacted for his comments, DMK organising secretary and Rajya Sabha MP, RS Bharathi denied that there is any move for Stalin assuming powers of the general secretary also.
The general secretary Anbazhagan's announcement on Thursday regarding the general body meeting also mentioned that one of the objectives of the meeting was an amendment of certain bylaws of the party. Sources in the party said this is regarding amending the bylaw of the party to allow outsiders contest in the party's symbol during elections. In the recent Lok Sabha polls, four candidates from other parties contested in the DMK ticket and won. A few legal cases regarding the validity of this is pending.
The party's performance in the two recent bypolls and the preparation for the upcoming local body polls will be other important issues that are expected to be discussed in the general body meeting.