Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi was admitted to a Chennai hospital late on Thursday after complaining of breathing problems caused by a throat and lung infection, The Hindu reported. The 92-year-old former Tamil Nadu chief minister was accompanied to the hospital by several DMK leaders, including his son MK Stalin and daughter M Kanimozhi, the report said.

A statement issued by the Kauvery Hospital in the city’s Alwarpet area said Karunanidhi was in stable condition after undergoing a tracheotomy to help him breathe. They said he was on antibiotics and being treated for his infection by a team of doctors. Tracheotomy is a surgical procedure conducted to create an opening in the neck of a patient for direct access to the windpipe (trachea).

This is the second time this month that the DMK chief has been admitted to hospital. On December 1, he was admitted for nutritional treatment and hydration. He was discharged on December 7.

While the DMK chief has not been seen in public for 40 days since developing a drug-related allgergy in October, the party on December 10 said he would chair its general council meeting, where Stalin is expected to made working president. News of his admission and treatment comes even as the state mourns the death of former state chief minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader J Jayalalithaa.