Family fight haunting Maran in LS battle

A little tiff may be no reason to throw generations of relationship down the proverbial drain, but DMK candidate Dayanidhi Maran's opponents are telling voters that repaired relations between Karunandihi's family and the Marans might break anytime. 

While Maran has kept mum on the ugly episode that saw him removed from the union ministry, disowned by the DMK and fall from grace, AIADMK candidate S M K Mohammed Ali Jinnah has been reminding the electorate that their interests could be compromised because of fights between the two families. 

Maran, grandnephew of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, is fighting from Chennai Central constituency once represented by his late father Murasoli Maran. 

Relations between the two families were strained after the death of Murasoli Maran, but the last straw was an opinion poll published in the Marans-owned Tamil daily 'Dinakaran', which projected Karunanidhi's younger son M K Stalin as the heir apparent. Karunanidhi had called this as an attempt to create division in his family. However, the families have since reconciled.   

From a shy businessmen to a high profile Union Minister, Dayanidhi had a meteoric rise to become the DMK's national face. As minister, he brought millions in investments to Tamil Nadu and is now banking upon this for victory in the May 13 election.