Later talking to newspersons, Mr Bhagyaraj said he would campaign

for the DMK led Democratic Progressive Alliance (DPA) candidates in the May 8 assembly elections throughout the state.

He said his fans and supporters might be surprised that he has chosen the leadership of Mr Karunanidhi, especially after having declared by MGR as ''his heir in the world of arts'' but the late leader himself had supported Mr Karunanidhi after the death of party founder C N Annadurai.

Stating that Mr Karunanidhi was living for Tamils and Tamil Nadu, he said he was convinced that it would be proper only if he functioned under his leadership.

The other reasons for joining DMK were that after coming to power in 1991, Ms Jayalalithaa was steadfast in blacking out the fame of MGR and sidelining MGR loyalists, he said.

She had named the Film city after her name as ''JJ film city'', but Mr Karunanidhi, when returned to power in 1996, renamed it as MGR Film city, he said.

Many MGR loyalists like former Ministers R M Veerappan Mr S Thirunavukarasar, Mr K K S S R Ramachandran, Dr H V Hande and Mr K A Krishnasamy had been shown the door by Ms Jayalalithaa, he alleged.

Even now, when the AIADMK released the list of candidates, none of MGR loyalists like former Ministers Semmalai, Muthusamy and Saidai Duraisamy could find a place, he said.

The late R Tamaraikani was one of the leaders for AIADMK's growth in the southern districts, but Ms Jayalalithaa had ''ruined'' his family after he joined the DMK, Mr Bhagyaraj further charged.

He said people affectionately call Ms Jayalalithaa as ''Amma'', but she had mercilesely dismissed more than 10,000 road workers, just because they were appointed by the previous DMK regime and sacked more than one lakh government employees at one stroke, when they launched a strike.

He was greatly hurt when Ms Jayalalithaa had launched a personal attack against Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the May 2004 Lok Sabha elections, he said, and took a dig at her for forging ties with the MDMK, after having declared the party as an anti-national party.

Ms Jayalalithaa had also brought bad name to MGR and the party, by arresting and humiliating Kanchi seer Jayendra Saraswathi, he said adding the concessions announced by Ms Jayalalithaa in the last one year was only to hoodwink the people.

UNI WS KVV VJ RN1546