Chennai: Founder of the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK), Vijayakanth, who passed away on Thursday, was laid to rest with State honours inside the premises of his party headquarters, where a spacious Andal Azhagar Marriage Hall once stood, even as a multitude of his fans and admirers and well-wishers bid him a tearful farewell on Friday.
Since daybreak, when the mortal remains of 71-year-old Vijayakanth, who had distinguished himself as a popular film actor and political leader, was kept at the Island Grounds for public homage, the stream of mourners started pouring in from all over the State.
Governor R N Ravi was among the prominent personalities who paid their respects to the former Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, at Island Grounds, from where the cortege moved towards the party office after 2.30 pm.
The public viewing venue was shifted to the sprawling Island Grounds after the party headquarters witnessed chaotic scenes with mourners crowding the premises in large numbers and jostling their way to have a last glimpse of the man they adored on Friday.
DMDK supporters and the actor’s fan club members have come over to the party office from all over the State in various forms of vehicles that were parked haphazardly all over the city causing traffic snarls and leading to vehicular diversions, thus throwing the city out of gear.
The traffic snarls that started from Anna Salai, where Island Grounds is located, and spread to other parts of the city since morning. By afternoon the crowds had gathered all along Poonamallee High Road as the cortege passed through to reach Koyambedu.
Once the final journey ended at the party headquarters, police stopped the mourners from entering the premises allowing only select family members and other VIPs from the political and cinema worlds to reach the final resting place, causing resentment among the fans and political acolytes.
With angry mourners squatting on the road and blocking traffic, police made arrangements for the installation of a giant LED screen at the gates of the party office to enable them to watch the conduct of the final rites that were beamed on the screen, easing the tense situation.
Chief Minister M K Stalin, Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundarajan, State Ministers K N Nehru, Thangam Thennarasu, Udhaynidhi Stalin, T M Anbarasan, M Subramanian and DMK MP T R Baalu were among those who were present as the final rites were conducted with State honours.
The political leaders who visited the party office were former Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan, former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, former State Minister D Jayakumar and TMC leader G K Vasan, among others.
Supporters of Vijayakanth had come over for the funeral from all over the State hiring vans and cabs and also in private vehicles. In places across the State, flex boards mourning the passing of the leader were erected along highways and also inside towns and villages. Posters had appeared in walls even in Chennai, paying tributes to him.
As interment was beamed on television, a few persons took to social media to recall Vijaykanth’s grief when he had to give a portion of the Andal Azhagar Marriage Hall compound for the construction of a flyover at Koyambedu junction to ease traffic congestion in 2006-07. Though he valiantly fought against the move by the National Highways Authority of India to demolish the kalyana mandapam that he had constructed with passion, he could only save a part of it.
Since then, the premises had seen several historic events related to the DMDK held there and many historic and politically significant decisions taken there as it was the prime meeting spot for the party. Even the meeting in which Premalatha Vijayakanth took charge of the party from Vijayakanth recently was held there.
