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 Tribute to ex-Speaker Kalimuthu
 Top AIADMK leader K Kalimuthu, whose tenure as Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker was marred by controversial rulings, died of cardiac arrest at Apollo Hospitals in Chennai
on November 8, 2006.
Kalimuthu's body, which was shifted to his house from the hospital, would be taken to his native village Ramaveeranpatti in Virudhunagar district, where the funeral was held
on November 9.
A powerful orator and writer, Kalimuthu entered politics after leading the anti-Hindi agitation in 1965. Attracted by the Dravidian ideology, he joined the DMK during his
student days and was elected to the Assembly for the first time in 1971.
He supported late M G Ramachandran when he was expelled from the party in 1972. He was one of the few MLAs who crossed over from the DMK to the AIADMK that year.
The CBI had filed a case against him for allegedly recommending the name of a friend Robin Mein to nationalised banks to obtain loans by mortgaging fake RC books. The
case is still pending.
After MGR's death, Kalimuthu joined the DMK and was elected to the Lok Sabha from Sivakasi. But he quit the party only to rejoin the AIADMK. He was made a deputy
general secretary by party supremo Jayalalithaa, whom he had opposed tooth and nail and supported MGR's widow Janaki Ramachandran after the party split in 1987.
Elected as the Assembly Speaker in 2001, he gave many controversial rulings, including the order for arrest of the then editor of 'The Hindu' N Ravi and chief of bureau V
Jayanth.
Kalimuthu's style of conducting the proceedings drew flak from Opposition parties with en masse eviction of Opposition MLAs and walkouts becoming the order of the day.
He had not been keeping good health for the past one year and was replaced as the party's nominee for the May Assembly polls by S K T
Jakkaiyan.
Police had recently filed a case against him, alleging malpractices in the award of contract to run a mess in the MLAs hostel in
Chennai.
Kalimuthu was 64 and is survived by his wife, four sons and five daughters.
Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa condoled his death.
Karunanidhi said Kalimuthu was an ardent follower of Dravidian ideology right from his student days and fought against imposition of Hindi.
"He was a good friend, a good writer and orator," he declared.
Expressing shock over his "untimely" death and terming it as an irreparable loss to the party, Jayalalithaa said, "Kalimuthu was in the forefront in fighting for the interests of
the party and worked for the development of the Tamil language till his last breath."
She announced that her party would observe three-day mourning. Party flags would fly at half mast and all party functions stood cancelled.
(Agencies)
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