CHENNAI: Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of CM MK Stalin, will be sworn in as a minister on Wednesday. He is now DMK youth-wing secretary and an MLA representing the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly segment. Already, he is projected as the heir-apparent to MK Stalin in the DMK and the government.
An official release from the Raj Bhavan said: “The Chief Minister has recommended to the governor to induct Udhayanidhi Stalin, MLA from Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly constituency in the council of ministers. The governor has approved the recommendation. The swearing-in-ceremony will be held on December 14 at 9.30am at Durbar hall.”
There are speculations that he might be given the portfolio of youth welfare and sports development, besides special programme implementation or rural development. Sources said the reshuffle of portfolios of a few ministers might also be announced on Wednesday.
Udhayanidhi has been the youth-wing secretary of the DMK since 2019 and was recently re-appointed to the post. His father MK Stalin held this post for a long time between 1982 and 2017. During the 2021 Assembly elections, Udhayanidhi was a star campaigner of the DMK, and his extempore speeches at public meetings and canvassing votes were received well by the people. His satirical attack on the BJP-led Centre for failing to construct the AIIMS in Madurai by holding a piece of brick made a significant impact on the campaign.
Udhayanidhi is also a successful actor in Tamil. He has acted as protagonist in Oru Kal Oru Kannadi, Idhu Kathirvelan Kadhal, Manithan, Nimir, Kanne Kalaimaane, Nenjukku Needhi and Kalaga Thalaivan. Besides, he has produced several Tamil movies and is expected to produce Kamal Haasan’s Indian-2.
Udhayanidhi Stalin is assuming the office of a minister amidst criticism about ‘dynastic politics’ in the DMK.
His immediate task would be to prove his mettle as an able minister in the coming days to shake off the image that he was being promoted to top posts in a short span of a period. His father, MK Stalin, worked for the party for decades, and his rise was slow and steady. He served as mayor, local administration minister, deputy chief minister, and leader of the opposition. In party, too, he held many positions before becoming its president.