The stage is set for the first ever state conference of the DMK youth wing, billed as a mega show of strength by its president and Local Administration Minister M K Stalin who has all but been formally declared Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s heir-apparent.
The two-day conference, taking place in the southern town of Tirunelveli this weekend, is also being projected as a bid to reinvigorate the youth in the party who, insiders feel, are drifting towards the newly formed Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam and the All-India Samathuva Makkal Katchi of Tamil film stars Vijayakanth and Sarath Kumar respectively.
The conference is taking place after the recent upheaval in the party sparked by an inspired opinion poll in Tamil daily Dinakaran, owned by the Maran brothers of Sun TV network, which showed Karunanidhi’s grand-nephew Dayanidhi Maran ahead of his elder son M K Azhagiri in Madurai. The survey led to a violent attack on the daily and the eventual exit of Maran from the Union Cabinet.
Survey
The survey provoked anger in the ruling family because it sought to upset the unwritten understanding that Stalin would take over from Karunanidhi as party chief and his brother Azhagiri would be uncrowned king in Madurai and other southern districts.
By nominating his daughter Kanimozhi to the Rajya Sabha, Karunanidhi has ensured that she would take the place of his late nephew, Minister Murasoli Maran, as his pointsperson in New Delhi.
This is the first time that Stalin (55) will be stealing the limelight from his father as it will be an out-and-out youth affair with senior leaders taking the backseat. Stalin, who has been heading the youth wing since its launch in 1980 in Madurai, was made the deputy general secretary of the party two years back.
Stalin to steal limelight
Since then, senior leaders like party general secretary K Anbazhagan and treasurer Arcot N Veerasamy have resolved themselves to Stalin taking over from Karunanidhi.
To reinforce this, Karunanidhi has written a series of articles in party organ Murasoli on the conference, stressing that the old order should give way to the new.
New entrants
Unlike Dravida Munnerta Kazhagam  (DMK) conferences where Anbazhagan will hoist the party flag, the honour has been given for the youth conference to new entrant to politics, Tamizhachi Thangapandiyan, sister of state Minister for School Education and daughter of senior DMK leader late Thagapandiyan.
A former English professor in a government college, Tamizhachi is close to Kanimozhi.
Karunanidhi, Anbazhagan and Stalin are the only senior leaders listed to address the conference.