M. Natarajan, husband of V.K. Sasikala, who died here early on Tuesday, will be noted mainly for his behind-the-scenes role in Tamil Nadu politics and the image he built for himself as a strategist and a power centre in the AIADMK.
Though he was married to the close associate of the late AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, he was shunned by the latter and banished from her household for decades. However, he often claimed to be the force behind Jayalalithaa’s rise in politics.
In March 1989, as Leader of the Opposition, Jayalalithaa wrote a resignation letter to the Assembly Speaker. She also indicated her intent to quit politics in that. Natarajan’s loyalists in Poes Garden alerted him about the letter, and he promptly had the letter collected and sequestered in his house.
Student leader
The police raided Natarajan’s residence and found the letter. It was promptly released to the media. The events that followed – on March 25, 1989, the State Assembly unprecedented violence – played a role in the rise of Jayalalithaa in politics.
MN, as he was known in political circles, was a native of Vilar in Thanjavur. He entered politics as a student leader during the anti-Hindi agitation days.
He became close to DMK leaders. His marriage to Sasikala in the early 1970s was presided over by the then Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.
Natarajan was made an assistant public relations officer in the State government. While being posted in Cuddalore, he got the opportunity to move closely with Jayalalithaa, then a new entrant to politics. Sasikala, who owned a video recording and cassette-lending shop, was given the task of videographing Jayalalithaa’s public meeting. The introduction to Jayalalithaa developed into a strong bond, helping them to emerge as an influential couple in Tamil Nadu politics.
Jayalalithaa had a roller-coaster relationship with Natarajan and Sasikala. Initially, the couple stayed with her in Poes Garden. Amidst charges that he had a dominating influence on her.
Jayalalithaa directed her party cadre not to have any truck with him and expelled him from her household. Sasikala continued to stay in Poes Garden. She also expelled Sasikala and eleven others from her residence in 2011. But Sasikala re-entered Poes Garden after submitting an apology and distancing herself from Natarajan. However, party functionaries used to maintain contact with him on the sly.
There was something mysterious about him, as no one knew the source of his power and influence. He was a globe-trotter and fancied himself to be a writer, scholar, journalist and patron of literature. He serialised his autobiography ‘Nenjam Sumakum Ninaivugal’ in Tamilarasi, a magazine he edited.
Beyond parties
He had his brushes with the law. He was convicted and sentenced to a two-year prison term, handed down in 2010 for importing a brand new Lexus car and passing it off as a used one to evade import duty.
The sentence was recently confirmed by the High Court, but the Supreme Court allowed him to get bail. He had earlier been arrested on charges of assaulting journalists, of assaulting a police intelligence constable and once on land grabbing charges.
Mr. Natarajan maintained relationships with leaders cutting across party lines. He claimed to be a supporter of the Sri Lankan Tamil cause. After the defeat of the LTTE in Mullivaaikal, he made arrangements to construct a memorial in Thanjavur.
