Chennai, Nov 24 (PTI) The AIADMK in Tamil Nadu on Sunday celebrated the birth centenary of former Chief Minister Janaki Ramachandran, wife of late party founder M G Ramachandran, here.
Janaki was the first woman chief minister of Tamil Nadu, who headed the state briefly in January 1988 after the death of her husband and then CM Ramachandran, popularly addressed as MGR.
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami led the celebrations at a marriage hall in the city. Scores of leaders and celebrities, including actor Rajinikanth and DMDK general secretary Premalatha Vijayakant paid rich tributes to the late Janaki.
Palaniswami inaugurated a photo exhibition on the occasion.
A yesteryear actor, Janaki Ramachandran was sworn-in as CM of the state following MGR's death in December 1987, even as the party had split into two factions. The respective factions were headed by Janaki and late CM J Jayalalithaa.
However, in 1989, she buried her differences with Jayalalithaa and handed over the AIADMK's leadership to her.
Recalling this episode, Rajinkanth in a video message played out at the venue said Janaki told Jayalalithaa that she was the one capable of taking forward the AIADMK and handed over the party to her and later kept away from politics.