Chennai, June 3 (IANS) The DMK was in a celebratory mood Thursday as their leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi turned 87.
Karunanidhi was kept busy right from morning. In the morning, after cutting a birthday cake at his Gopalapuram residence here, he visited the memorials of DMK founder and former chief minister C.N. Annadurai, and E.V.K. Periyar, founder of the Dravida Kazhagam from which the DMK emerged. He also released white doves there.
Later, he went to the DMK headquarters here where party cadres and other leaders greeted him and presented him a shawl.
On the occasion, leaders of various political parties conveyed their greetings to him.
Karunanidhi has been chief minister of Tamil Nadu five times and has won all the assembly elections he fought since 1957.
His eldest son M.K. Azhagiri is the union minister for chemicals and fertilisers, younger son M.K. Stalin is the deputy chief minister while daughter K. Kanimozhi is a Rajya Sabha MP.
Grand nephew Dayanidhi Maran is the union minister for textiles.
On Wednesday, he formally handed over his Gopalapuram home to a trust which would convert the property into a hospital after his and his wife Dayalu Ammal’s death.