Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister M K Stalin, projected as political heir apparent to his father and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, today turned 59.
Mr. Stalin celebrated his birthday by cutting a cake with his family members and later met his party workers.
DMK cadre distributed sweets at many places as DMK’s promotional songs blared from loudspeakers in many areas, praising Mr. Karunanidhi and Mr. Stalin.
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State ministers, alliance party members from PMK and Congress and others greeted Stalin, fondly addressed as ’Thalapathy’ (the General) by his supporters.
His Madurai-based elder brother and Union Minister M K Alagiri greeted Stalin over phone, party sources said.
Long hailed as the face of DMK’s youth wing, Mr. Stalin first became minister after the 2006 Assembly polls. He was subsequently promoted as Mr. Karunanidhi’s Deputy two years later.
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A former Mayor of Chennai, Mr. Stalin now handles important portfolios, including Industries and Municipal Administration.
He had a stint in acting on the small screen.
The 59 year-old Stalin was among several DMK leaders jailed under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the emergency in 1976.