RIP J Anbazhagan: An outspoken leader who fought against the sale of gutka in Tamil Nadu
After eight days of remedy, DMK MLA J Anbazhagan succumbed to "extreme Covid-19 pneumonia" on the Dr Rela Institute and Medical Centre right here on Wednesday. He's the primary legislator within the nation to have died of the viral an infection.
Anbazhagan was admitted to the hospital with extreme acute respiratory misery on June 2 and examined constructive on the time of admission. He had been concerned in social gathering actions and made public appearances until Could 27, collaborating within the DMK's 'Ondrinaivom Vaa' initiative, and distributing aid supplies to individuals.
He was placed on a ventilator on June 3. He was being weaned off the ventilator when his situation worsened once more, an announcement from the hospital mentioned on June 8. He was declared useless at 8.05 am on Wednesday, which was, by the way, his 62nd birthday.
His final rites had been carried out on the Kannammapet burial floor. Tons of of DMK cadres had been in attendance and the police had a tricky time regulating the group.
In the meantime, DMK president MK Stalin and different senior leaders paid floral tribute to Anbazhagan's portrait at Anna Arivalayam, the social gathering's headquarters within the metropolis.
Stalin had earlier visited the hospital earlier than Anbazhagan's dying was introduced. The DMK has cancelled all its occasions for the subsequent three days and lowered the social gathering flag to half-mast.
Anbazhagan was one of many social gathering's most outstanding faces in Chennai and his dying has come as an enormous blow to functionaries.
The three-time MLA was elected from the Chepauk-Triplicane constituency in 2011 and 2016 and from T Nagar in 2001. He was probably the most outspoken leaders within the social gathering and loved nice cadre assist inside the social gathering.
DMK Rajya Sabha MP, P Wilson, instructed New Indian Specific that the deceased MLA had been instrumental in getting a CBI inquiry into the unlawful sale of gutka and pan masala within the State.
"Anbazhagan fought the essential gutka case through which there was collusion amongst politicians, bureaucrats from Central and State authorities departments and Company officers. He fought the case within the Supreme Court docket and succeeded," Wilson mentioned. Because the highly effective secretary of the social gathering’s Chennai West District unit, Anbazhagan was recognized for not mincing phrases through the social gathering's inside conferences. He additionally maintained cordial relationships with social gathering leaders from rival events.
T Nagar MLA, VP Kalairajan, who lately joined the DMK, described Anbazhagan as a great human being.
"Although I defeated him within the 2006 election in T Nagar, he organized a grand welcome for me once I joined DMK. He additionally supported me in finishing up social gathering actions," he mentioned. Saidapet DMK MLA Ma Subramanian mentioned Anbazhagan was all the time approachable to his constituents and social gathering cadres.
T Mari, a DMK supporter from Chepauk, mentioned Anbazhagan had by no means missed a gathering or operate organised by social gathering employees. "He handled all social gathering employees as equals, which gained him assist among the many cadre and folks," he mentioned.
Anbazhagan was recognized to talk his thoughts even within the State Meeting. He was briefly suspended from Meeting this January after he tore up a duplicate of Governor Banwarilal Purohit's handle to the Home and positioned the items of paper on the desk of Speaker P Dhanapal.
All through his political profession, Anbazhagan recognized himself as a follower of the late DMK chief M Karunanidhi.
His father Jeyaraman, popularly often called Pazhakadai Jeyaraman, was a frontline functionary of the social gathering since its launch in 1949. He was a prison-mate of DMK president MK Stalin once they had been each imprisoned beneath MISA through the Emergency.
Anbazhagan was appointed as DMK's youth wing organiser for T Nagar space in 1987. Later he grew to become the DMK's T Nagar unit secretary within the early 1990s after his father's demise. He was elected as South Chennai district secretary in 2002.
Anbazhagam is the fifth DMK MLA within the 15th Meeting to have died. The others are former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi (Thiruvarur), Okay Radhamani (Vikravandi), KPP Samy (Tiruvottiyur) and S Kathavarayan (Gudiyatham).
