Thaindian News

New Delhi/Chennai, May 22 (IANS) DMK ministers will skip the United Progressive Alliance’s (UPA) second anniversary dinner to be hosted at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s residence Sunday evening, but the party will have a token representation at the bash - T.R. Baalu.

“Parliamentary party chief T.R. Baalu will attend it (the dinner),” DMK patriarch M. Karunanidhi told reporters in Chennai Sunday, two days after his daughter and DMK MP Kanimozhi was sent to jail in connection with the 2G scam.

None of the six DMK ministers in the Manmohan Singh government - including two cabinet rank ministers M.K. Alagiri and Dayanidhi Maran - will be present at the UPA bash that is likely to be attended by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and top leaders of the UPA constituents.

The DMK is the third largest constituent in the UPA coalition with 18 MPs.

Relations between the DMK and the Congress have appeared to be strained following the arrest of Kanimozhi.

Asked about the ties, Karunanidhi replied: “It is not like what you think.”

The DMK chief and former Tamil Nadu chief minister Saturday night discussed with other party leaders the issue of attending the UPA anniversary dinner as ministers and MPs reached Chennai from Delhi.

DMK sources in Delhi said the party was in no mood to celebrate the completion of two years of the UPA as Kanimozhi was in jail.

During his visit to the capital Karunanidhi would meet his daughter Kanimozhi, former communications minister A. Raja and Kalaignar TV managing director Sharad Kumar.

All of them have been lodged in Tihar jail for their role in the 2G spectrum allocation case and Karunanidhi is expected to meet them when they would be produced before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Court.

Karunanidhi’s third wife Rajathi Ammal had met their daughter Kanimozhi Saturday in the court.

Asked about a possible meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the DMK supremo said there will not be any opportunity to meet her.

Karunanidhi, writing in the party organ “Murasoli”, said the arrest of Kanimozhi is a vendetta against the party and his family.

Defending Kanimozhi, he said her only crime was being a shareholder of Kalaignar TV as per his advice.

According to Karunanidhi, Kanimozhi invested Rs.2 crore in Kalaignar TV out of her share of the proceeds realised by his wife Dayaluammal selling her stakes in Sun TV Network.

He said a sum of Rs.100 crore was realised when Dayaluammal sold her stake in Sun TV. After paying a tax of Rs.22.5 crore on the proceeds the remaining were shared.