R Doraikkannu, Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Agriculture, passed away late Saturday night due to Covid-19. He was 72 and the end came at 11.15 pm according to a release issued by the corporate hospital in Chennai where he had been admitted in a critical condition on October 13.
Doraikkannu, hailing from Rajagiri in Thanjavur district was a three time MLA in the Tamil Nadu assembly having been elected in 2006, 2011 and 2016 from Papanasam assembly constituency.
The then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa included him in her cabinet after the 2016 election and he continued in the ministries headed by OPannerselvam and Edappadi Palaniswamy.
More than that of politician, Doraikkannu always looked and behaved like a farmer and villager and this had endeared him to all people irrespective of party affiliations.
Doraikkannu is the fifth law maker in Tamil Nadu assembly to die causing five vacancies in a House with effective strength of 234.