Senior Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader and former Union Minister TR Baalu on Saturday was elected as the party’s leader in the Lok Sabha. In a statement issued days after the DMK-Congress alliance swept 37 of 38 of Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu, the party said that Baalu was chosen at a meeting of the newly-elected DMK Lok Sabha members, held at the party headquarters on Saturday.
At the meeting, which was chaired by DMK President MK Stalin, the party also elected Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) and Women’s Wing Secretary Kanimozhi as the Deputy Leader of the party in the Lok Sabha. With Kanimozhi having won in the Lok Sabha polls, she would soon be expected to resign as Rajya Sabha MP.
Former Union Minister A Raja was elected as the party’s whip in the Lok Sabha. In December 2017, Kanimozhi and A Raja had been acquitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation special court in the 2G scam. The three leaders — TR Baalu, Kanimozhi and A Raja– have long been the eyes and ears of the DMK at the capital.
Thanjavur Lok Sabha MP SS Palanimanickam will serve as the treasurer of the party in the Lok Sabha. Trichy Siva would be DMK’s Rajya Sabha Committee Leader and TKS Elangovan its Deputy Leader. A total of 23 DMK members have been elected to the Lok Sabha from Tamil Nadu.
Thanking the cadres in a letter on Saturday, DMK President MK Stalin said that those days were over when it was believed that only Hindi-speaking states constituted India. He added, “Now it is time for constructive politics, with a central focus on the states. Whichever party comes to power at the Centre, it cannot neglect the states. It is time to support and embrace all kinds of races.”
According to the DMK chief, his party will take steps to bring together secular forces in order to implement the Tamil Nadu strategy in other states as well. The DMK also won 13 of the 22 Assembly seats, for which the bye-polls were held along with the Lok Sabha polls. With this victory, the total number of DMK members in the Tamil Nadu Assembly has increased to 101.
Early on Saturday morning, Stalin led his group of MPs and MLAs to the memorial of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi at the Marina beach.
(With inputs from IANS)
Source: The News Minute