Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s (MDMK) A Ganeshamurthi, the sitting Lok Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu’s Erode, passed away on Thursday morning due to cardiac arrest, sources from his party told PTI.
Ganeshamurthi, 77, reportedly attempted suicide by consuming poisonous tablets at his home on March 24. According to the police, he was promptly taken to a local hospital and subsequently transferred to a private institute in Coimbatore.
After an initial examination, he was admitted to the ICU and placed on a ventilator, as per PTI. The Lok Sabha MP was then transferred to a private hospital in Coimbatore.
State Minister for Urban Development and Housing S Muthusamy, BJP MLA from Modakurichi Dr C Saraswathy, and AIADMK leader K V Ramalingam visited the hospital to inquire about Ganeshamurthi’s health, along with several other politicians.
The Erode Town police have officially changed the case from an attempted suicide to a case of death by suicide, according to authorities. The hospital has released the body to the police, who will transport it to the Institute of Road Transport (IRT) Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination. Following the autopsy, the body will be taken to Kumaravalasu village, located 15 km away, for burial.
Ganeshamurthi, a veteran three-time MP, held significant positions within the MDMK hierarchy. He expressed disappointment over the party’s decision to deny him a ticket to contest the Erode seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Meanwhile, the DMK has nominated its candidate for Erode and allocated the Tiruchy seat to the MDMK. Durai Vaiko, son of MDMK general secretary Vaiko, has been chosen as the party’s candidate for Tiruchy.
Ganeshamurthi was a widower and is survived by a son and a daughter.
(With inputs from PTI)