From rxpgnews.com
Two newspaper staffers killed in DMK fraternal war
By IANS,
May 9, 2007 - 4:03:35 PM
Madurai -, May 9 - Two staffers of the Tamil daily Dinakaran were killed Wednesday when DMK workers stormed its office after it published an opinion poll favouring Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's younger son Stalin over the elder Azhagiri as the veteran politician's political heir.
Two buses were also burnt in this temple town as the succession battle in the ruling DMK took a sudden bloody turn.
The two victims of the violence were both computer operators in Dinakaran, owned by the Sun Group of Kalanidhi Maran, elder brother of union Telecommunications Minister Dayanidhi Maran.
Supporters of M.K. Azhagiri attacked the office of the mass-circulated daily after it published an opinion poll Wednesday on 'Who should be the political heir to Kalaignar?' Karunanidhi is popularly known as Kalaignar, or artist.
According to the reported poll findings, 70 percent of people in Tamil Nadu want M.K. Stalin, who is now the local self-government minister, to succeed the octogenarian chief minister.
Only two percent reportedly opted for Azhagiri and another two percent rooted for Kanimozhi, Karunanidhi's daughter.
In Chennai, 68 percent of the people reportedly preferred Stalin and one percent Kanimozhi while Azhagiri drew a blank.
Azhagiri has for long been in charge of party affairs in the southern districts of the state and has his base in Madurai. But even here he was the choice of only six percent of the people.
Karunanidhi had found himself in trouble only the day before when another poll published in Dinakaran on 'Who is the best minister at the centre from Tamil Nadu?' placed Dayanidhi Maran at the top and union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss, son of ally PMK leader S. Ramadoss, somewhere at the bottom.
The PMK chief protested vehemently, forcing Karunanidhi to denounce the poll.
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