Chennai:
Rejecting allegations of AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa that he had amassed wealth in public life, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Wednesday declared his assets, saying he possessed nothing more than a house at Chennai and a little over Rs six crore deposits in a bank.
"It is not true that I came to Chennai penniless. I had started earning even before settling down here....' the DMK patriarch, who has come under repeated attacks from Jayalalithaa, wrote in party mouthpiece 'Murasoli'.
He said he had made enough money in his early days as a playwright and scriptwriter for various Tamil films.
"I was paid Rs 10,000 in those days when my play 'Manthiri Kumari' was made into a film by (noted comedian), late N S Krishnan. He later even gifted me a car in Chennai when I won a bet with him," Karunanidhi said.
The 87-year-old DMK chief said the house he is now residing in was bought many years ago for Rs 45,000 and despite his party colleagues insistence, had never stayed in an official residence, either as minister or Chief Minister.
"In fact, this house is so small that my children now live in separate homes bought by them," Karunanidhi, whose son M K Stalin is the deputy Chief Minister, said. His second son M K Alagiri is a union minister and Karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi an MP.
He said he had written screenplays for more than 75 Tamil films and used the revenue earned for philanthropic purposes. He owns no other property other than his house at Chennai.
Recalling the birth and growth of Sun TV from his nephew, the late Murasoli Marans times, he said when the latters son Kalanidhi Maran wanted to run the management by himself, he (Karunanidhi) had received his share of Rs 100 crore.
"I was left with Rs 77.50 crore after paying taxes and divided it among my sons and daughters. I was left with Rs 10 crore. I deposited Rs five crore from that towards creating a Kalaignar Karunanidhi Trust and have been helping the poor from the interest received on that amount," he said.
"I possess a sum of Rs 5.65 crore as Fixed Deposit and Rs 35.90 lakh in savings bank account," he said.