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India: thousands gather after Tamil Nadu leader Jayaram Jayalalitha suffers heart attack India: thousands gather after Tamil Nadu leader Jayaram Jayalalithaa suffers heart attack
(about 5 hours later)
The popular leader of India’s southern Tamil Nadu state was in critical condition Monday morning after suffering a heart attack, the hospital said. The south Indian state of Tamil Nadu is bracing for unrest after its ailing chief minister, Jayalalithaa Jayaraman, suffered a heart attack on Sunday evening.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayaram Jayalalitha was being monitored by “a team of experts, including cardiologists, pulmonologist and critical care specialists,” according to a statement from Dr Subbaiah Viswanathan at Apollo Hospitals in the state capital of Chennai. The 68-year-old, known to her supporters as “Amma” (mother), starred in more than 150 movies before becoming a titanic figure in the state’s politics and serving as chief minister four times.
The 68-year-old actress-turned-politician suffered the heart attack Sunday night after being hospitalized two months ago with a fever, dehydration and a respiratory infection. She was taken to Apollo Hospitals in the state capital Chennai where a spokesman on Monday said she had had surgery and was improving, but remained in “grave” condition.
Government officials have rushed to the hospital in Chennai. Police were on guard as thousands of Jayalalitha’s followers gathered outside. Jayalalithaa was hospitalised two months ago with a fever, dehydration and a respiratory infection but was said to be recovering well.
Affectionally called “Amma” or “mother” by her supporters, Jayalalitha joined politics in the early 1980s after a successful film career that included appearances in nearly 150 movies. The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party leader has an intense following in the state that is typical of a south Indian political culture, where politicians and film stars can develop a quasi-religious following.
She has had three stints as chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the latest of which began in May 2011. Despite our best efforts, our beloved CM remains in a grave situation. #GodblessAmma
Thousands of Jayalalithaa’s supporters have surrounded the hospital where she is being treated and more than 1,000 security personnel have been deployed to the site, according to Indian media.
Her third stint in office in 2014 was cut short after a court found her guilty of corruption and sentenced her to four years’ prison. The decision triggered riots across the state that saw vehicles set alight and women shave their heads in mourning.
The conviction was set aside the following year and she returned to office in May 2015.
Jayalalithaa was a popular actor for nearly two decades before being persuaded to enter politics by M G Ramachandran, another actor-turned-politician who served as chief minister of Tamil Nadu.
She governs in a highly personal and populist style, setting up “Amma canteens” and distributing water, salt, medicine and building materials that bear her visage.
Political figures across India have expressed concern and offered prayers for her health, including her great political rival, M Karunanidhi, and the Indian president Pranab Mukherjee.