Senior Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader and former Union Minister Subbulakshmi Jagadeesan announced her decision to retire from active politics on Tuesday, September 20. In a statement, she has said that she submitted her resignation letter to party president MK Stalin on August 29. The 75-year-old Subbulakshmi was the deputy general secretary of the DMK, and she represented the Tiruchengode Lok Sabha constituency between 2004 and 2009. She also served as the Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment.
Subbulakshmi served as a minister in the government headed by late chief minister MG Ramachandran from 1977 to 1980, after which she joined the DMK. She also served as a minister in the government led by late Chief Minister M Karunanidhi from 1989 to 1991. Most recently, she had contested the 2021 Assembly elections from Modakurichi constituency, but was defeated by Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) C Saraswathy.
Subbulakshmi, in her statement, appreciated MK Stalin for taking the DMK to victory in 2021. "I am happy that our chief minister M K Stalin is being appreciated across the country for the good work he is doing for the state and the party," Jagadeesan said. The former Union minister also said in the statement that she had retired from the party, as it was her long-term wish to quit active politics. Subbulakshmi said that after her tenure as MP in 2009, she had conveyed to the then party president M Karunanidhi that she was interested in party work and was working for the development of the party at the grassroots. She also added that after the passing away of Karunanidhi, her sole objective in party work was to make the party president MK Stalin the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.