Chennai: Paying rich tributes to Karunanidhi, he said Kalaignar was a tall personality and a great leader. He was a crusader of social justice and equality. “All his life he fought for deprived and backward sections of the society. He was protector of freedom of speech and guardian of democratic rights and social reformer. For decades he ensued progressive work both for the party and for the people of Tamil Nadu. I felt very sad on hearing news of his demise on Aug. 7. In Bihar, we observed two days state mourning. With his death an era has ended,” he said.
Karunanidhi was active in politics for almost eight decades and he was DMK president for 50 years. The late leader piloted widow remarriage and fought against religious hypocrisy, he said. Karunanidhi’s ideals and work will continue to inspire generations of political and social workers besides leaders, Kumar said. The DMK will grow with the blessings of the late leader and able leadership of Stalin, he said.
As Chief Minister he had not only engineered the growth of industries and IT but also took effective steps to resolve the problem of unemployment for youth. The DMK patriarch ensured equal property rights to women, 30 per cent reservation for women in government jobs and 33 per cent reservation in panchayati raj institutions, he said.
