OBITUARY
Mannargudi clan loses its kingmaker in Natarajan
Few From Present Govt Condole His Death
D.Govardan@timesgroup.com 21.03.2018
Chennai: Maruthappa Natarajan, the 74-year-old chieftain of the Mannargudi clan, better known as V K Sasikala’s husband, is no more. He was a kingmaker who could never hog the limelight.
The fortunes of Natarajan, a public relations officer in the state government, took a turn for the better after his wife got acquainted with former general secretary of the AIADMK, J Jayalalithaa.
Jayalalithaa, as part of her induction process as propaganda secretary of the AIADMK, was sent by M G Ramachandran to Cuddalore, where Chandralekha was the district collector and Natarajan PRO. Sasikala was assigned to videograph Jayalalithaa’s public meeting. Sasikala developed a rapport with her by supplying video cassettes regularly to her.
The couple moved into Jayalalithaa’s Poes Garden residence, Veda Nilayam, way back in the 80s and ruled the state through proxies for a major part of the last three decades.
Natarajan was an activist during his student days. He galvanised students into action in Thanjavur during the anti-Hindi agitation in 1965. The stir brought him close to M Karunanidhi. It is this association that fetched him an assistant public relations officer job in the state government in 1970. Had he not become a government employee, chances were there that he would have become a Dravidian leader. He was closely associated with the DMK and its leaders, especially L Ganesan, during his youth. Ganesan eventually facilitated Natarajan’s marriage too. “I was the one who saw the bride for MN (Natarajan) and arranged his marriage. Karunanidhi presided over the wedding,” Ganesan told TOI. Natarajan fell out with Karunanidhi over a promotion issue.
While in Poes Garden, Sasikala and Natarajan stood by Jayalalithaa during several upheavals in the party, including the death of former chief minister M G Ramachandran (MGR), the split in the AIADMK and the 1989 assembly polls that saw the DMK triumphantly returning to power after a gap of 14 years.
Jayalalithaa sent out Natarajan from her residence within a few months of coming to power in 1991, but allowed Sasikala to stay back with her. Natarajan never gave up. He attracted AIADMK ministers, functionaries and bureaucrats to his house, and his recommendations were dutifully carried out by Sasikala. Insiders say Jayalalithaa often turned a blind eye to this.
Natarajan emerged from the shadows after Jayalalithaa’s death on December 5, 2016, to make claims that he had politically ‘groomed and mentored’ her. For a brief while, Natarajan appeared to be calling shots in the party and the government. Surprisingly, Sasikala too developed a distrust for him as she knew he had chief ministerial ambitions, something she also nurtured. Her imprisonment and the subsequent tiff between Natarajan and T T V Dhinakaran left the former powerless. His hospitalisation in September last year and the resultant organ transplant forced him to stay away from public life since then. If not for Natarajan, Jayalalithaa would not have remained in politics, says Tharasu Shyam, referring to her resignation letter, addressed to the assembly speaker, which was seized by the state police from Natarajan’s residence. “It was he who worked for unifying the Jayalalithaa and Janaki factions of the party. Theirs was a lovehate relationship as she suspected that he would try to take over the party. He was never a member of the AIADMK, but was expelled thrice from the party,” says Shyam.
“Sasikala’s lack of political understanding was advantageous for Natarajan. He had a key role in picking candidates for the Madurai East and Marungapuri bypolls that the united AIADMK fought and won in March 1989, after reclaiming the ‘two leaves’ symbol,” says Trichy Velusamy, who was once close to Jayalalithaa and had known Natarajan for long.
Velusamy claims he and Natarajan played crucial roles in getting the DMK government dismissed in 1991, but both were shown the door once the AIADMK came to power under Jayalalithaa. After that, Natarajan could get close to Jayalalithaa only when her body was kept for public to pay homage at Rajaji Hall in Chennai. Many in the present government owe their political fortunes to Natarajan and Sasikala, but none thought it necessary to even condole his death.
BEHIND THE SCENES: A file photograph of Natarajan with Sasikala
Mannargudi clan loses its kingmaker in Natarajan
Few From Present Govt Condole His Death
D.Govardan@timesgroup.com 21.03.2018
Chennai: Maruthappa Natarajan, the 74-year-old chieftain of the Mannargudi clan, better known as V K Sasikala’s husband, is no more. He was a kingmaker who could never hog the limelight.
The fortunes of Natarajan, a public relations officer in the state government, took a turn for the better after his wife got acquainted with former general secretary of the AIADMK, J Jayalalithaa.
Jayalalithaa, as part of her induction process as propaganda secretary of the AIADMK, was sent by M G Ramachandran to Cuddalore, where Chandralekha was the district collector and Natarajan PRO. Sasikala was assigned to videograph Jayalalithaa’s public meeting. Sasikala developed a rapport with her by supplying video cassettes regularly to her.
The couple moved into Jayalalithaa’s Poes Garden residence, Veda Nilayam, way back in the 80s and ruled the state through proxies for a major part of the last three decades.
Natarajan was an activist during his student days. He galvanised students into action in Thanjavur during the anti-Hindi agitation in 1965. The stir brought him close to M Karunanidhi. It is this association that fetched him an assistant public relations officer job in the state government in 1970. Had he not become a government employee, chances were there that he would have become a Dravidian leader. He was closely associated with the DMK and its leaders, especially L Ganesan, during his youth. Ganesan eventually facilitated Natarajan’s marriage too. “I was the one who saw the bride for MN (Natarajan) and arranged his marriage. Karunanidhi presided over the wedding,” Ganesan told TOI. Natarajan fell out with Karunanidhi over a promotion issue.
While in Poes Garden, Sasikala and Natarajan stood by Jayalalithaa during several upheavals in the party, including the death of former chief minister M G Ramachandran (MGR), the split in the AIADMK and the 1989 assembly polls that saw the DMK triumphantly returning to power after a gap of 14 years.
Jayalalithaa sent out Natarajan from her residence within a few months of coming to power in 1991, but allowed Sasikala to stay back with her. Natarajan never gave up. He attracted AIADMK ministers, functionaries and bureaucrats to his house, and his recommendations were dutifully carried out by Sasikala. Insiders say Jayalalithaa often turned a blind eye to this.
Natarajan emerged from the shadows after Jayalalithaa’s death on December 5, 2016, to make claims that he had politically ‘groomed and mentored’ her. For a brief while, Natarajan appeared to be calling shots in the party and the government. Surprisingly, Sasikala too developed a distrust for him as she knew he had chief ministerial ambitions, something she also nurtured. Her imprisonment and the subsequent tiff between Natarajan and T T V Dhinakaran left the former powerless. His hospitalisation in September last year and the resultant organ transplant forced him to stay away from public life since then. If not for Natarajan, Jayalalithaa would not have remained in politics, says Tharasu Shyam, referring to her resignation letter, addressed to the assembly speaker, which was seized by the state police from Natarajan’s residence. “It was he who worked for unifying the Jayalalithaa and Janaki factions of the party. Theirs was a lovehate relationship as she suspected that he would try to take over the party. He was never a member of the AIADMK, but was expelled thrice from the party,” says Shyam.
“Sasikala’s lack of political understanding was advantageous for Natarajan. He had a key role in picking candidates for the Madurai East and Marungapuri bypolls that the united AIADMK fought and won in March 1989, after reclaiming the ‘two leaves’ symbol,” says Trichy Velusamy, who was once close to Jayalalithaa and had known Natarajan for long.
Velusamy claims he and Natarajan played crucial roles in getting the DMK government dismissed in 1991, but both were shown the door once the AIADMK came to power under Jayalalithaa. After that, Natarajan could get close to Jayalalithaa only when her body was kept for public to pay homage at Rajaji Hall in Chennai. Many in the present government owe their political fortunes to Natarajan and Sasikala, but none thought it necessary to even condole his death.
BEHIND THE SCENES: A file photograph of Natarajan with Sasikala
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