Kerala Leaders Pay Tribute to DMK Chief M Karunanidhi

Political leaders in Kerala have paid tribute to DMK leader and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi, saying the state had lost a close friend with his death.

Chief Minister and Opposition leader

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan recalled that Karunanidhi had always kept up warm, brotherly ties with Kerala and had worked to keep relations between the two neighbouring states friendly. Pinarayi said his contribution to widening cooperation and reducing differences between Kerala and Tamil Nadu deserved special mention. “Indian politics has lost one of its strongest leaders,” he said, adding that the loss came at a time when secular democratic forces needed to unite.

Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala described Karunanidhi as one of the country’s tallest leaders since independence and said the DMK leader had played a big part in bringing secular democratic organisations together.

Achuthanandan and the Governor

CPI(M) veteran and former chief minister V S Achuthanandan called Karunanidhi the voice of south India in national politics, saying he had tried to speak up for the south and to build a sense of Dravidian identity among Tamils. Achuthanandan recalled dealing with him on matters such as Mullaperiyar, Koodamkulam and the treatment of PDP leader Abdul Nasser Madani.

Governor P Sathasivam said Karunanidhi combined statesmanship with creativity. He said the welfare schemes Karunanidhi introduced as chief minister showed his commitment to social justice, to lifting up backward classes and the poor, to secularism and to Tamil heritage, and called his death a loss beyond words.

A shared view

Across party lines, Kerala’s leaders described the DMK leader as a figure whose influence reached well beyond Tamil Nadu.

See also: Political leaders

Originally published on 8 August 2018. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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