CHENNAI: Amid the DMK’s meticulous preparations to celebrate minister Udhayanidhi Stalin’s birthday on Monday, speculations are rife that he will very soon be promoted to the next level, in the government and the party.
Udhayanidhi is currently one of the ministers in the 35-member cabinet under Chief Minister MK Stalin and is also secretary of the DMK’s youth wing which is one of the 23 wings of the party. Despite the relatively limited significance of these roles, the DMK is making efforts to make Udhyanidhi’s birthday special as he is being projected as the heir apparent to Stalin.
“All party cadres have accepted Udhayanidhi due to his hard and smart work and cadre-friendly approach. We are expecting the announcement of him being made the deputy chief minister and a few other similar announcements,” a senior state-level DMK functionary told TNIE.
Several senior DMK leaders who are privy to the developments in the party’s ‘first family’ also shared the same thoughts. The anticipation is that the idea will be officially put forth at the DMK’s youth wing conference scheduled for December 17 at Salem.
The official party organ Murasoli’s choice of words (in advertisements) and the unprecedented extensive coverage of Udhayanidhi seem to be aimed at preparing the cadre for the announcement. In the last five days, Murasoli has republished DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi’s letters addressed to cadre under the theme “Let’s pave the way for the youth.”
These letters were penned by Karunanidhi in 2007, just ahead of the party youth wing’s first state-level conference held at Tirunelveli in December 2007. These letters, according to party sources, were written to elevate then-minister and youth wing secretary Stalin to the next level. A senior DMK leader TNIE spoke to said the state has a large base of young voters and Udhayanidhi’s elevation will help the party to win these voters.
Veteran political journalist Raghavendra Ara, who also closely watches DMK, told TNIE, “Udhayanidhi is already attending various programs either on behalf of the CM or to replace him. By publishing the old letters of Karunanidhi, the party leadership has indicated its intention very clearly and to do it very soon.”