Tamil Nadu: Udhayanidhi Stalin sworn in as minister

Chennai, December 14, 2022

Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Chief Minister M. K. Stalin was sworn in as a minister in his father's cabinet on Wednesday.

Tamil Nadu Governor R. N. Ravi administered the oath office to him. The swearing-in ceremony was held at Durbar Hall of Raj Bhavan and was attended by several dignitaries.

All senior ministers of the Stalin cabinet were present during the ceremony.

The junior Stalin took the oath of office in Tamil.

Udhayanidhi will be the third generation from the Karunanidhi family to become a minister in Tamil Nadu after his late grandfather 'Kalaignar' Karunanidhi and father Stalin.

Udhayanidhi, a movie actor and producer, was elected from the Chepauk Assembly constituency, which was represented by Karunanidhi, in the 2021 Assembly elections with a huge majority.

The young scion of the Karunanidhi family got the Sports and Youth Affairs portfolio.

Udhayanidhi later told media persons that he would strive to make Tamil Nadu the sports hub of the country.

He said that he was not worried about the criticism against him on becoming a minister in his father's cabinet, and added that he had faced such criticism even when he had become the state secretary of the DMK youth wing.

The actor-turned-politician said that he would not be able to act in the movie that he had signed to work with Tamil superstar Kamal Haasan. He told reporters that Kamal Haasan was one of the first persons to congratulate him on his new post. He also said that "Mamannan" would be his last movie.

The young leader also said that he would develop mini-stadiums in all the districts of the state to promote sports culture.

Meanwhile, the opposition AIADMK and the BJP criticised Chief Minister Stalin for inducting his son as a minister in the cabinet.

AIADMK spokesperson Kovai Satyan in a statement said, "The Prince Charming is being made a cabinet minister and will soon be made the King."

He also said that Stalin has lied to the people of the state and has made his son a minister contrary to his earlier position that he would keep his family away from such posts. He also said that the DMK was functioning in a totally undemocratic manner.

The BJP also came out strongly against junior Stalin becoming a minister. Party spokesman, Narayanan Thirupathy told IANS, "Dynastic politics is not good for democracy. Stalin has gone back from what he had spoken while he was in opposition."

The AIADMK leader also said that by 2024 Udhayanidhi would become the Deputy Chief Minister and would be the Chief Minister candidate of the party in 2026

Sources in the AIADMK told IANS that the party would conduct a campaign across the state against the DMK playing politics in an "undemocratic manner", and how the party was getting immersed in dynasty politics.

IANS