Muthuvel ‘Kalaignar’ Karunanidhi’s passing, many would say, played out to a script that he would have enjoyed writing. There was drama, mourning, politics, a bit of chaos and plenty of tears — emotions typically associated with Dravidian politics.

To be fair, it was building up for well over a week. Ever since the DMK patriarch was admitted at Chennai’s Kauvery Hospital on June 28, there were whispers that this would be it — that he had finally met his date with mortality. Karunanidhi though, had spent the greater part of a decade giving obituary writers, a run for their money.

Setting

“Our leader is immortal, he cannot leave us!” one DMK supporter hollered at me as I waited outside Karunanidhi’s Gopalapuram residence a week ago, when his health concerns began getting serious. “He is like a father to us all. During his younger days, we would play with cricket on these very streets, with Stalin and Alagiri,” said another neighbour, reminiscing the past.

For a week, the claim of immortality almost seemed to be prophetic. Days after he was admitted, one medical bulletin said that Karunanidhi’s health was “normalising”, even after suffering a “transient setback”. What was even more prophetic was a Karunanidhi quip from well over a decade ago, loosely translated to read, “even if you throw me into the sea, I will float like a log of wood”.

All through the day, “rise up and return!” was the enduring cry from thousands of DMK workers as they waited with baited breath for an update on the five-time chief minister’s health. Less than two hours earlier, a medical bulletin had reported a “significant decline” in Karunanidhi’s health and that his vital organs had begun deteriorating.

Flashpoint

On Tuesday, at 6.10pm, the fighter in Karunanidhi took one last bow. The anguish — even for someone in the twilight of his life — was writ large on the faces of supporters. There was wailing, weeping and hysteria. Added to the histrionics was the Tamil Nadu Government’s denial of permission to lay the DMK chief’s mortal remains at Marina Beach.

The Tamil Nadu Government had turned down the DMK’s request for a Marina burial, citing legal hurdles. There are after all, ongoing cases in the Madras High Court, pertaining to burial of chief ministers — and subsequent construction of memorials. There may have also been the burden of precedence on the Tamil Nadu Government: only chief ministers who met their demise while in power are buried at the Marina — J Jayalaithaa, MG Ramachandran and CN Annadurai.

The Government chose to give the DMK a two-acre plot of land across town, at Gandhi Mandapam — a site which saw two other Chief Ministers K Kamaraj and C Rajagopalachari; both men, chief ministers under the Congress.

The DMK promptly challenged the order and knocked on the doors of the Madras High Court late into the night. A hearing began at the home of Acting Chief Justice G Ramesh. Many hours passed, as we waited for a midnight verdict that would hopefully settle the matter then and there. That wasn’t to be. Chief Justice Ramesh adjourned the matter to 8am, as the State Government requested time to reply to the DMK’s petition.

Suspense

“Our point was that a burial at Marina is apt because the spot is representative of the Dravidian movement,” said Richardson Wilson, part of the DMK’s legal counsel, moments after the adjournment.

By this time, the Tamil Nadu Government had moved beyond its “legal hurdles” argument, and argued, predictably, that a Marina Beach resting place was meant only for sitting Chief Ministers. The Government counsel pointed out how both former chief ministers, Kamaraj and Rajagopalachari were laid to rest at Gandhi Mandapam, and not Marina Beach. “We contended with that saying that it was the Congress, which wanted the resting place to be Gandhi Mandapam,” said Richardson.

When the court adjourned in the morning, the “legal hurdles” were disposed off, as all petitions against memorials at Marina Beach were withdrawn. The hearing went on for a while longer, before the court ordered, at 10.45am, that M Karunanidhi could be buried at Marina Beach.

Vindication

No sooner was the verdict pronounced, roars echoed all across Rajaji Hall, where Karunanidhi’s mortal remains lay in State. Stalin, standing next to the casket, broke down, his hands covering tears of joy. Hugs were shared between senior DMK leader A Raja and Duraimurugan. In another corner, Kanimozhi smiled, sharing a quiet word of relief with Dayanidhi Maran.

The shouts of joy from cadre continued to echo even as Prime Minister Modi made his way to the dais at Rajaji Hall, to pay his respects.

The day belonged to the DMK. It was even more fitting that a man who did not lose a single election in a 60-year-long political career, did not lose this battle either. Karunanidhi will rest alongside his mentor, founder of the DMK, and former Tamil Nadu chief minister, C N Annadurai. There couldn’t have been a more dramatic ending.

First Published:Aug 8, 2018 12:03 PM IST