The Hindu : Front Page : A birthday to remember for Karunanidhi

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Wednesday, Jun 04, 2008
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A birthday to remember for Karunanidhi

R.K. Radhakrishnan

— Photo: DIPR

STRENGTHENING BONDS: Governor Surjit Singh Barnala greeting Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on his 85th birthday at his Gopalapuram residence in Chennai on Tuesday.

CHENNAI: For Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, his 85th birthday on Tuesday meant more work and a longer day. The octogenarian is routinely up at 4 a.m. and labours close to midnight, but the day began half an hour earlier than usual and ended much later than normal.

At 3.30 a.m. he was awake, beginning the day by planting a sapling near his CIT Colony residence at 3.50 a.m.

He drove to Gopalapuram, where a few early-risers and Ministers, including T.R. Baalu, waited to greet him and his wife Dayalu Ammal. A stream of senior DMK workers followed and, around 6 a.m., all the members of the Karunanidhi family had assembled at Gopalapuram. His sons, including M.K.Azhagiri and M.K.Stalin, sought his blessings and later, at their insistence, he cut a cake.

He hardly spent about half-an-hour with his family when the first of the VIPs came calling: Governor Surjit Singh Barnala. The two share a relationship that goes beyond their current term in office.

“Your able administration and statesmanship has brought about all-round development and prosperity in Tamil Nadu,” Mr. Barnala said, wishing him a “long, happy and healthy life.”

A few in the long list of VIPs and officials, who were a shade late, had to content themselves with greeting Mr. Karunanidhi as he was leaving for Anna Square to pay floral tributes to his mentor C.N. Annadurai.

After a brief halt at the Anna Memorial, he laid a wreath at the Periyar Memorial at Periyar Thidal.

After a quick breakfast, he was at the party headquarters, greeting the scores of workers who had gathered well before the day break. As elaborate arrangements had been made to control the crowd, many were able to get a glimpse of their ‘Thalaivar.’

A long list of VIPs punctuated Mr. Karunanidhi’s interaction with the cadre — both on phone and in person. Congress president Sonia Gandhi sent a message through External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, while Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and PMK founder S. Ramadoss greeted him on phone.

Variety of gifts

The cadre brought with them a variety of gifts — shawls, sweets, fruits, books, dhotis, flowers, cash, an assortment of garlands, mementoes… The list grew as the day progressed. All gifts were patiently handled and stacked away.

The cash went to the party’s treasury right away — it was dropped into a huge box, similar to ‘hundi.’ The mementoes went to the ‘Kalaignar Karuvoolam,’ where most of his gifts are exhibited, and the books were all indexed on stage and put away for reference. The poor would get the food stuff and the shawls.

“This is the 46th year that his birthday is being celebrated by the party,” said Arcot N. Veeraswami, party treasurer and Electricity Minister. “I think only on two occasions —when we were in jail under the MISA [Maintenance of Internal Security Act-1975] and to protest against the killing of Sri Lankan Tamils — the birthday was not celebrated.”

Later, after the party came to power, Anna participated in a function that was organised to felicitate Mr. Karunanidhi. “In those days, people who were being felicitated never came for the function,” recalled party principal secretary and PWD Minister Durai Murugan.

At the function, organised by Illammarugu Porselvi, Anna, praised Mr. Karunanidhi for the long hours he put in each day and his single-minded devotion to the party.

To this day, Mr. Karunanidhi continues in the same manner, party seniors say. He had hundreds of gifts on Tuesday. But, what is the one thing he wants as a birthday gift? “Sethu Samudram,” he replied.

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