DMK supremo and Tamil Nadu chief minister Karunanidhi, who landed in Delhi a couple of days back with the sole aim of getting everything worked out on the issue of seat-sharing with the Congress, had to return empty-handed. The only solace was that Congress chief Sonia Gandhi granted him an audience after much cajoling and coaxing.
According to sources, the Congress, which had demanded 80 seats and a share in the power, got infuriated with the DMK for not revealing its mind over the issue. It further got irritated when Mr Karunanidhi publicly announced that the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) was a part of the Democratic Progressive Alliance (DPA) in the state.
This led the Congress to ensure that the PMK founder Anbumani Ramadoss issues a statement asserting that no decision has been taken on the alliance-front, sources added. Mr Ramadoss has been camping in Delhi and is in constant touch with Congress leader Ahmed Patel.
It has also been learnt through sources that Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mr Patel were present when Mrs Gandhi met the DMK chief. MP and Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi was also present when the discussion on the alliance issue took place. Senior DMK leaders T.R. Balu and Union textiles minister Dayanidhi Maran were asked to leave the room after the initial exchange of courtesies. Sources said that Mr Gandhi had made it clear that the Congress can not compromise on the number of seats and that the specific constituencies too should be decided only in consultation with the state leadership. For his part, the DMK chief extracted a concession that he can go public about the continuance of the alliance and that a committee would be formed to thrash out the nitty-gritties. The Congress leaders felt irritated that the TN CM’s way of saying that he wouldn’t be able to part with the number of seats as demanded by the Congress, as the PMK too had to be taken on board, sources said.