Chennai: The seesaw battle of octogenarian DMK patriarch M. Karunanidhi to overcome infection-related fever and allied complications saw his family resting a bit Saturday night, with the doctors at the Kauvery Hospital telling them he was stable.
Early in the evening, the hospital issued a brief statement saying Karunanidhi was admitted in the intensive care unit at 1.30 a.m. following drop in blood pressure. “His blood pressure has been stabilized with medical management and he continues to be monitored and treated by the panel of expert doctors”, said the Kauvery bulletin.
Son Stalin and daughter Kanimozhi, apart from the other important members of the family and senior party leaders, who had all gone home after spending most part of the day and the evening with Karunidhi and the Kauvery medical team at Gopalapuram, rushed back around 1.00 a.m. when the news about the pulse drop was conveyed to them. After a brief discussion with the doctors, the family decided to shift him to Kauvery and an ambulance was summoned.
The large turnout of party workers keeping vigil outside the house, many with prayers constantly on their lips, raised ‘thalaiva, kalaignar’ slogans as the ambulance drove their unconscious leader to Kauvery. As the day progressed, the doctors at the ICU managed to control the fever, caused by a urinary tract infection (UTI), through intravenous administration of antibiotics and sustenance fluids, sources said.
When their Kalaignar moved from Gopalapuram to Kauvery, his party cadres and fans too moved to the hospital and camped outside along the pavements of Alwarpet junction. They had come from different parts of the state and many from the neighbouring states too. And they had loads of stories of how the iconic Dravidian stalwart spoke at this rally and that conference, how he captained the DMK ship through the worst of political storms and how there could never be another like him.
“I came from Theni last evening along with my husband and went straight to Gopalapuram. When the ambulance took Kalaignar to the hospital, we too came here. We will not leave Chennai until he gets back to Gopalapuram, healed”, said Kalaiselvi. Many around her nodded in assent as if to convey they too would stay put near the hospital and continue to pray for their leader's recovery and return home.
