In a shocking development, Tamil Nadu Minister and senior ADMK leader Doraikannu has been battling for life after he was tested positive for the COVID-19 viral infection and he has been spelled critical and placed under the support of ECMO (Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation). 

Doraikannu has been serving as the Tamil Nadu Minister for Agriculture and he was admitted to Kauvery Hospital in Chennai on October 13 after he had developed chest pain and breathing difficulty. The treating hospital has issued an official statement on Sunday concerning the minister's health in which it revealed that the minister has tested positive for the novel coronavirus after he was admitted to the hospital. 

The hospital further stated that the 72-year-old septuagenarian has been suffering from multiple comorbidities and he was put through the scan test after testing positive for the viral infection and his scan report had shown 90% lung involvement and he is currently placed under the support of ECMO. He has been critical and getting monitored by a team of doctors. 

After confirmed to have contracted the pandemic, he has become the fifth state minister to get tested positive and so far, dozens of MLAs in the state had tested positive for the virus and they are either got recovered or under treatment. DMK's J Anbalagan had succumbed to the pandemic on June 10, becoming the first legislator in the country to die due to the infection.

According to the reports, Doraikannu had on October 13 developed chest pain and breathing difficulty while he was traveling to Salem to pay homage to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's mother, who passed away at the age of 93 due to cardiac arrest in Salem. Doraikannu was traveling from Chennai to Salem by road and when his convoy reached Villupuram, he complained of breathing difficulty following which he was rushed to the Villupuram Government Medical College and Hospital in Mudiyambakkam. 

After getting the first aid treatment at the government hospital, he was later brought to Chennai by road through ambulance for further treatment and got admitted to Kauvery hospital in the city. Initially, he was doing stable and the hospital has now revealed that he had tested positive for COVID-19 and under the support of ECMO. 

The Executive Director of the hospital said that Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami and senior ministers Jayakumar and C Vijayabaskar had on Sunday visited the hospital and enquired about the health condition of minister Doraikannu and spoken with his family members. The 72-years-old politician is a native of Rajagiri in Thanjavur district and he was elected to the legislative assembly in 2006, 2011, and 2016.