Stalin glows in Karunanidhi's succession plan

TIRUNELVI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK leader M. Karunanidhi has said he will shortly name his successor -- in all probability his son and Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin.

The 84-year-old leader was widely expected to anoint Stalin, 54, as his successor at a two-day conference of the party's youth wing that ended here late Sunday.

Karunanidhi stopped short of formally naming Stalin but gave enough indication that he is the man who will lead the DMK in future.

"I have done my duty as a father. I expect you to perform your duties as a son," the chief minister told Stalin, seated next to him on the dais.

"I understand your expectations," Karunanidhi said in response to vocal cries from Stalin supporters seeking a more active role in the DMK and the government for Stalin. "An announcement on this will be made soon," Karunanidhi said.

The massive preparations for the first state-level meet of the youth wing more than two decades after it was set up led to widespread expectations that the anointment of Stalin was imminent.

Apparently, over Rs.20 million was spent on the conference with a half-a-million square feet of tented accommodation to accommodate an estimated 800,000 party workers and supporters.

Stalin, who has been the youth wing secretary since its inception, told the conference Saturday that he was not after any post but was ready to take up any responsibility.

The conference adopted several resolutions including one on the treatment meted out to Malaysian Tamils.