Rajaram, the Gentleman in Tamil Nadu Politics Passes Away

February 10th, 2008

Veteran Tamil Dravidian political leader K. Rajaram long hailed as a “gentleman in politics” (arasiyalil oru panpaalar) passed away on Feb 8th.

The Former Tamil Nadu Assembly speaker, born in 1926, K Rajaram died at a private hospital in Chennai at the age of 82.

Rajaram, a close associate of DMK founder late C N Annadurai, was a minister in the Karunanidhi ministry from 1971 to 1976 and again in the Jayalalithaa ministry from 1991 for some time.

He was the Assembly Speaker from 1980 to 1984. Rajaram was also an MP from Salem from 1962 to 1970.

He was labour and transport minister in the Karunanidhi cabinet and industries minister in the Jayalalithaa ministry.

Rajaram, along with the late VR Nedunchezhiyan, parted company with the DMK after the dismissal of the Karunanidhi ministry in 1976 and later joined the AIADMK.

He was elected to the state assembly from Panamarathupatti in Salem district in 1980 and became the assembly speaker.

He became the industries minister in Jayalalithaa cabinet in 1991, but was dropped from the ministry after some time.

Rajaram was also a secretary to social reformer Periyar E V Ramasamy for many years

Reacting to Rajaram’s demise Mr. Veerasingham Amandasangaree ,leader of the Tamil United Liberation Front, issued a statement expressing condolences. The text of the statement is given below:

It was with utter dismay that I received the news of the sudden demise of Shree. K. Rajaram a long standing Tamil Nadu Politician and Ex-Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

He was a gentleman politician who made his services available to everyone who needed his help. He was a great patriot as well.

My association with him extends to a period of over 30 years. It was in late 1976 that l took the Late Hon. G. G. Ponnambalam Q.C President of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress and a reputed Criminal Lawyer in Sri Lanka to Madras to defend the Present Chief Minister Hon. Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanithy after his Government of 1976 was dismissed.

It was the Late Hon. K. Rajaram who took charge of Hon. G. G. Ponnambalam’s programme during his stay in Chennai.

Incidentally Hon. G. G. Pannambalam was to assume office as Joint President of the TULF along with the Late Hon. S. J. V. Chelvanayagam Q.C and the Late Hon. S. Tondaman President of the Ceylon Workers Congress, on his return to Colombo after the case. Little did we realise then that Hon. G. G. Ponnambalam was on his last journey and will not return alive.

He flew to Singapore, from where only his remains arrived for us to receive at the Katunayake Air Port.

In 1980 I once again met Hon. Rajaram at Luzaka in Zambia where both of us attended the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Conference. He represented Tamil Nadu as its speaker and I represented as a Member of Parliament from Sri Lanka.

During our short stay we participated in the 100th anniversary celebration of Mahakavi Subramania Barathiar, organised by the Tamils there.

On his way back home he visited Sri Lanka and was the chief quest at the Bandaravanniyan Commemoration meeting at Vavunia.

During my long stay in Chennai between October 1983 and December 1989 we used to meet off and on. We had attended many functions and also addressed a number of meetings.

He was very friendly and much helpful to the Leaders of the Tamil United Liberation Front like the Late Mr. A. Amirthalingam, the Late Mr. M. Sivasithamparam and many others like Mr. R. Sampanthan.

I send my deepest sympathies to his kith and kin, his constituents and the People of Tamil Nadu. May his soul rest in Peace.

V. Anandasangaree,

President-TULF.

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