Chennai: Chief Minister M K Stalin agreed that the demand in the party for elevating Minister for Sports Development Udhayanidhi Stalin to the post of Deputy Chief Minister had become stronger but had not yet ‘ripened,’ suggesting that it might not happen immediately.
Replying to a query from the media that accosted him after he launched a slew of welfare projects worth Rs 8.45 crore, laid the foundation for Rs 3.25 crore worth schemes and inspected the developmental work carried out for Rs 355.25 crore at his Kolathur Assembly constituency, he put an end to the rumour that had been making its round for long.
However, it was the first time when Stalin was asked about the Deputy Chief Minister post directly in public in front of whirring television cameras when he replied that the demand might have become vocal but had not ripened.
To another question on the preparedness for rains, he said the State would tackle the monsoon rains effectively and that all precautionary measures had been put in place to prevent floods.
The speculations on the elevation of Udhayanidhi Stalin had been there in the political circles for quite some time and even people in the DMK were talking about it.
In mid-July, the rumours became very intense in social media that even mainstream television channels and some print media outlets picked up the story for dissemination.
Seeking to add credence to the rumours was the talk about the Chief Minister’s proposed visit to the US to lure industrial and business investments to the State by the middle of August.
The conjecture was that Udhayanidhi Stalin would be made in charge of the State Ministry in the absence of Stalin and for that he would be officially named as Deputy Chief Minister ahead of the US visit.
On July 20, when Udhyanidhi Stalin was asked about the rumoured elevation as he came out of the celebrations of the DMK youth wing’s founding anniversary, he said that it was the Chief Minister’s prerogative to assign work to his Ministers.
He also said that all Ministers in the State Cabinet were deputies to the Chief Minister, thus putting to rest the rumours of his imminent promotion within the Ministry.
Now that the talks about the Chief Minister’s visit to the US have gained ground again – they say that he might leave towards the end of August – the rumours on the appointment of the deputy Chief Minister have also reared their head. But the Chief Minister himself scotched them.
