Dayanidhi Maran: The Nephew Of Karunanidhi, DMK Candidate From Central Chennai (image-facebook/Dayanidhi Maran, the son of former Union minister Murasoli Maran is fielded as the central Chennai candidate of DMK. Dayanidhi is the nephew of the late chief minister M. Karunanidhi, a prominent figure in Tamil Nadu politics.
He has been elected as a member of the parliament to Lok Sabha from Chennai Central constituency thrice earlier. Dayanidhi’s political journey is marked by electoral success, business interests, and controversies, highlights the complex interplay of family influence, power and public scrutiny.
Born in 1966, the DMK leader received his primary education in Tamil Nadu and graduated in Economics from Loyola College in Chennai. Dayanidhi has also attended the “Owner/President Management Programme” from Harvard Business School. His political presence was cemented after being re-elected from the Chennai central constituency twice. Though his contribution to the party is commendable, there was speculation regarding his association with the influential Sun Group, owned by his brother Kalanithi Maran. Often questions were raised about the potential conflicts of interest, contributing to a perception of nepotism.
During the 2004 UPA government, Maran served as the Minister of Textiles and later Minister of Information and Broadcasting. He undertook projects like reviving textile mills and promoting digital broadcasting, leaving a mixed legacy.
When supporters credited him with job creation and modernisation initiatives, critics allege irregularities in project execution and favoritism towards the Sun Group-owned media outlets.
Apart from that, during his tenure as IT and Telecommunication minister, the call rates of mobiles and landlines were drastically reduced which in turn influenced the growth of subscriptions. Many multinational telecom companies including Nokia, Motorola, Ericsson, Flextronics and Dell set up units in the country. Waving away all the allegations, the contribution given to the Makkal of Tamil Nadu is commendable during his tenure as the minister.