TN Minister P T R Palanivel Rajan Dead

Madurai, May 20 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister and DMK stalwart P T R Palanivel Rajan died of cardiac arrest early today.

The 74-year-old former Speaker of the State Assembly, hailing from a family with close association with the Dravidian movement right from its early period, was arriving here in train along with other ministers for a grand reception and felicitation.

The end came near Dindigul enroute and he was rushed to a private hospital where he was declared dead.

The body of the deceased leader is being brought to the city by road, police and party sources said.

Elected from the Madurai Central constituency in the just concluded Assembly poll, the gentleman-politician was inducted into the Karunanidhi Ministry as HR&CE Minister. His father, P T Rajan, a close associate of rationalist leader E V Ramasamy Naicker, was a leading light of the Self Respect Movement and a stalwart of the Justice Party.

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