Sep 25, 2024 01:39 AM IST
During the DMK’s 75h anniversary celebrations on September 17, SS Palanimanickam publicly requested Stalin to consider making Udhayanidhi as his deputy
On a possible cabinet reshuffle and minister Udhayanidhi’s elevation, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin on Tuesday told reporters that there will be a change and that it will not be disappointing. There has been an increasing speculation that Stalin’s son and sports minister Udhayanidhi will be made the deputy chief minister soon and simultaneously the cabinet would go through a reshuffle.
Stalin was speaking to the media when he visited his constituency, Kolathur, in Chennai on Tuesday.
The leadership is expecting former minister V Senthil Balaji, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2023, to come out of jail on bail in near future with his plea pending in the Supreme Court.
“The cabinet reshuffle might happen around the time when Balaji is likely to be released, though we do not know yet if he may be inducted again,” said a DMK leader on condition of anonymity.
“If he does not get bail, it is still uncertain if the reshuffle will still happen,” the leader added.
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Responding to reporters in Tamil, Stalin said, “There won’t be disappointment, there will be change.” The chief minister fielded questions with single sentences regarding the matter. Previously, in August, when reporters asked him the same question, Stalin had said that “time is not yet ripe” for changes.
On September 18, when Udhayanidhi was asked about his elevation, he said, “It is an individual decision of the chief minister. The decision is solely his (Stalin’s).” This came after a carousel of DMK party leaders and cadres sought his elevation to the non-constitutional post in the Tamil Nadu cabinet.
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Since January, there has been a collective demand for Udhayanidhi’s elevation. Last month, Tamil Nadu minister RS Rajakannapan told reporters, “After August 19, party cadres can call Udhayanidhi deputy chief minister.” At that time, the chief minister had hinted at a cabinet shuffle before he left for the US on a 20-day trip to attract investments to the state.
During the DMK’s 75h anniversary celebrations on September 17, former Union minister SS Palanimanickam publicly requested Stalin to consider making Udhayanidhi as his deputy, adding that he can guide the next generation of party cadres.
Udhayanidhi, 46, is a film producer and actor. He became an MLA for the first time after winning from the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni constituency in 2021 and was inducted into the cabinet as the sports minister in December 2022.
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