‘An irrevocable loss’: T.N. political leaders condole demise of Kumari Ananthan-OxBig News Network

Congress cadre paying homage to a photograph of former Tamil Nadu Congress chief Kumari Ananthan in Erode, who passed away in Chennai in the early hours of Wednesday
| Photo Credit: M. Govarthan

Political party leaders, cutting across party lines, condoled the demise of former Tamil Nadu Congress president Kumari Ananthan, on Wednesday (April 9, 2025).

In a condolence message on X, AIADMK general secretary and Leader of the Opposition Edappadi K. Palaniswami said he was deeply pained by the news of the demise of Ananthan, who was also a prominent literary figure. He extended his condolences to Ananthan’s daughter and BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan and other family members. 

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K. Selvaperunthagai expressed grief over the veteran Congressman’s death and said: “Lost a party’s pillar. I am rushing back to Chennai from Ahmedabad to participate in the rituals in the evening,” he said. Ananthan had taken out a padayatra 17 times, seeking various demands and covering a distance of 5,548 km. He worked hard for the development of the Congress party, Mr. Selvaperunthagai recalled.

BJP leader and Union Minister for State L. Murugan also extended his condolences to Ananthan’s family. In a post on X, he said Ananthan was a literary luminary and a dedicated Congressman, who worked closely with K. Kamaraj (former Chief Minister of Madras).

In a post on X, BJP State president K. Annamalai recalled that Ananthan had gone on padayatras several times, demanding the linking of rivers and a temple for Bharat Mata. Ananthan’s demise is great loss for Tamil Nadu and the Tamil literary world, he said.

In a statement, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko described Ananthan’s demise as an “irrevocable loss”. Ananthan had secured a separate place for himself in the Tamil Nadu political arena. He was a multi-faceted personality and was a well-recognised Tamil orator, thinker, and writer, Mr. Vaiko recalled. 

“Mr. Ananthan’s work as a Member of Parliament will always remain in history. Securing the right to speak in Tamil in Parliament and winning the battle for demanding the applications for money orders and others in the Postal Department are some of his significant achievements,” he added. Ananthan also fought for implementing complete prohibition, Mr. Vaiko noted.

‘Best Congress chief’

In a statement, PMK founder S. Ramadoss said Ananthan was one of the best chiefs of Tamil Nadu Congress. “Ananthan fought for flight announcements to be made in Tamil and had a special affection towards me and the PMK,” he said. In a separate statement, PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss said complete prohibition had been one of the major objectives of Ananthan. “His demise is a major loss to the prohibition movement,” he said.

G.K. Vasan, president of the Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar), recalled that Ananthan brought a lot of schemes to the State and his constituency during his tenure as an MP and MLA. Mr. Vasan also hailed Ananthan’s contribution to the Tamil language through his literary works and said his demise was a great loss for Tamil Nadu.

In his condolence message, Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) general secretary T.T.V. Dhinakaran hailed Ananthan’s contribution to Tamil and the development of people of the State.

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president Vijay recalled that Ananthan had fought for implementing prohibition.