Kalanidhi Veerasamy of DMK was elected from Chennai North Constituency in 2019. The son of veteran DMK leader and former state minister Arcot N Veerasamy, he had his debut political journey in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He is a graduate of Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Stanley Medical College, with a specialisation in Plastic Surgery.
In 2019, a total of 23 candidates contested from various political parties and as independents from Chennai North constituency, which had a total of 14,87,461 voters. Dr Kalanidhi got 61.85% of the vote share and defeated his nearest rival, Alagaapuram R Mohanraj of DMDK, who got a vote share of 13.55% by more than 26,301 votes. North Chennai registered 61.46 % votes, the highest of the three constituencies in Chennai city.
Dr Kalanidhi Veerasamy: Personal information
| Name | Dr Kalanidhi Veerasamy |
| Age | 54 years |
| Political Party | DMK |
| Educational Qualification | M.B.B.S., M.S. (General Surgery), M.Ch. (Plastic Surgery), FRCSEd Educated at Madras Medical College, Shri Ramachandra Medical College & Research Institute, Stanley Medical College and Edinburgh |
| Profession | Plastic Surgeon Businessperson |
| Enrolled as a voter in | Chennai Central Lok Sabha Constituency |
| kalanidhiv@yahoo.co.in | |
| Contact Number | 26216628, 09884259482 |
| Address | A-3, 6th Street, Anna Nagar East, Chennai-600102, Tamil Nadu. |
Online presence
- Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr_Kalanidhi_Veerasamy
- Facebook: Dr Kalanidhi Veeraswamy
- Twitter: @DrKalanidhiV
- Instagram: Dr. Kalanidhi Veeraswamy
Criminal Cases – Nil
Read more: Clear plan for development the need of the hour for North Chennai
Assets and liabilities
Details | Holdings in 2024 | Holdings in 2019 | Change in % |
| Movable assets | Rs 32.27 Cr | Rs. 25.59 Cr* | 26.1% |
| Immovable assets | Rs 28.78 Cr | Rs. 14.86 Cr | 93.67% |
| Total Assets (Movable + Immovable) | Rs 61.06 Cr | Rs.40.52 Cr | 50.69% |
| Liabilities | Rs 37.82 Cr | Rs. 25.83 Cr | 46.41% |
Source: MyNetaInfo and ECI Candidate Affidavit
Positions held
In the 17th Lok Sabha:
- Member of Defence Committee (2019 – 2020)
- Member of Petroleum & Natural Gas Committee (2020-2023)
[Source: https://sansad.in/ls]
Performance in Parliament
Dr Kalanidhi Veerasamy has an attendance percentage of 83%, which is higher than both the National Average (79%) and the State average (74 %). Of the 15 parliamentary sessions, he has a 100% attendance in 3 sessions (Monsoon Session 2022, Budget Session 2023.
Notably, he was one of the 146 MPs, who were suspended during the December 2023 parliament session due to which he was able to attend only three of the 14 sessions (recording the lowest of his attendance).
| MP | Attendance | No of Debates participated | No of questions asked | Private Member’s Bill |
| Dr Kalanidhi Veerasamy | 83% | 59 | 295 | 3 |
| National Average | 79 % | 46.7 | 210 | 1.5 |
| State (TN) average | 74 % | 52.9 | 255 | 1.5 |
He participated in 59 debates, which included topics such as
- Request to govt to ensure to dropped the project of Kattupalli Adani Port for expansion
- Regarding setting up of a Desalination plant in North Chennai
- Regarding problems being posed by Kodungaiyur dumping yard in Chennai
- Regarding need to review the decision to close Railway Printing Press at Royapuram, Chennai
- Regarding need to increase efficiency of Ports
- Demand of an amendment to the Citizenship Act to include the Sri Lankan Tamils
- Regarding the problem of drug abuse in the Country
- Regarding relaying of Sewage and water lines in North Chennai
- The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020
He asked 295 questions in parliament, while the national and state averages are 210 and 255 questions respectively. These include:
- National Ambient Air Quality Programme
- Number of Jobs Created in Formal/Informal Sectors
- Health Outcomes of Marginalized Groups
- Rise in Heat Waves
- Sagarmala Scheme
- Lack of Digital Accessibility and Digital Literacy
- Works undertaken in Chennai Port
- National Higher Education Qualification Framework
- Price of LPG Cylinder
Source: Prsindia
Read more: North Chennai roads turn into an obstacle course for commuters
Dr Veerasamy was quite vocal about the drug abuse in the country and has urged the government to set up at least one free drug rehabilitation centre in each of the 543 Parliamentary Constituencies in India to ensure that there are facilities available both as outpatients and inpatients for serious drug abuse victims.
He has also spoken on how in the guise of development, an illegal project for expansion of Adani-owned Kattupalli Port is planned in his constituency.
He had said in one of his debates on this issue, “This project is illegal on three counts. One, it violates the CRZ rules as the erosion in this area is very high. Two, the eco-sensitive area of Pulicat Lake is less than 10 km and this project is in violation. Third, the wetlands are being converted to industrial land in violation of rules regarding the preservation of wetlands. This project will cause water bodies and rivers to be dried up leading to water shortage in an area where we are already suffering huge water losses and it will also lead to flooding. We have thwarted the public hearing which was kept 20 km away to prevent the participation of local people. I hope the Government will abandon this decision to save itself from condemnation of the people at present and in future.”
He has also introduced three Private Member’s Bills as mentioned below
- The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2022 (Amendment of section 2)
- The Emigration (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (Insertion of new Chapter IIA, etc.)
- The Infants, Children and Young Adults (Comprehensive Care and Protection) Bill, 2022
Source: Prsindia
MPLADS spending of Chennai North
| Total Entitlement | Rs 17 crore |
| Amount Recommended by MP | Rs 19.71 crore |
| Amount sanctioned | Rs 13.64 crore |
| Expenditure incurred | Rs 7.79 crore |
| Unspent Balance | Rs 0.0338 crore |
| Utilisation percentage of amount released | 155.972% |
In five years, Dr Kalanidhi Veerasamy has recommended Rs 19.71 crore worth of work sectors including sports (providing grill gate and sports equipment), public facilities (construction of dhobi khana for workers) and irrigation facilities (construction of toilet block; public Toilet at Rajaji Salai and construction of Anganwadi building).
Dr Kalanidhi in the news
Dr Kalanidhi was not seen much in the news except on a few occasions over the past five years.
The very recent one was on the MP submitting a petition to the Union Minister of Environment, Forests and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav urging him to take steps to close the Coromandel International Limited fertilizer plant in Ennore permanently following the gas leak incident.
Similarly, on September 15, 2023, the Madras High Court asked him to vacate the government land within a month, on which he had constructed a private hospital in Koyambedu in Chennai, failing which he would face eviction proceedings.
In May 2023, BJP State President K Annamalai also made some serious allegations of corruption against the MP in the row of ‘DMK Files’.
People of Chennai North speak
Tamilarasan, a resident of Ennore says that the MP’s recommendation to take steps to close the Coromandel International Limited fertilizer plant in Ennore permanently following the gas leak incident has come as a relief to the people who have been protesting since December 26. However, this is not enough. “These industries have been violating the norms for ages. There are norms in place but we do not see much involvement from the elected representatives unless something catastrophic happens,” he says.
Given that improving medical facilities in Chennai North constituency was one of the poll promises of Dr Kalanidhi, Shankari, another resident, says that not much has changed in that aspect as well.