But one important aspect-his passion for freedom and democracy and the willingness to make sacrifices to defend and protect these precious gifts-has not received adequate attention. Many facets of Kalaignar Karunanidhi, the senior most political leader in India when he passed away, have been spoken and written about. I also played a small, but significant role in forging the Congress-DMK Alliance in the 2004 Parliament election which led them to a sweeping victory of 40-0 in Tamil Nadu/Pondichery. From then up to 2006 we used to meet quite often and exchanged ideas on various aspects including politics, development and governance. This was brief but revived when he became Chief Minister again in 1996. My acquaintance with Kalaignar commenced only in 1990 when Chaudhary Devi Lal (former Chief Minister, Haryana) was Deputy Prime Minister of India. But, hailing from Tamil Nadu I kept a close watch on the happenings in my home State when he was Chief Minister. Having belonged to a cadre of Indian Administrative Service (Haryana) other than Tamil Nadu, I have neither worked with him nor under him. With the demise of Kalaignar Karunanidhi, an epoch-making chapter in the history and politics of Tamil Nadu has come to an end.
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