Chennai: Indicating that the ties between
DMK and Congress were intact, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M
Karunanidhi on Sunday said their alliance would not only benefit
the state but also the country.
"If both the parties are together, it will help not only
the state to prosper but also the country," he said at the
birthday celebrations of senior state Congress leader and
veteran film personality Muktha Sreenivasan here.
"DMK will also have the credit, if India prospers," he
said in remarks which assumed significance in the light of
speculations that ties between the two parties were coming
under strain over various issues.
Congress' efforts to strengthen its base in the state,
where it is out of power since 1967, and the CBI raids in
connection with alleged scandal over allocation of spectrum by
telecom ministry headed by A Raja of DMK had fuelled the
speculations.
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi during his recent
visit to the state to rejuvenate the party had told the
partymen not to be dependent on Dravidian parties and to build
the party on its own strength.
Gandhi not calling on Karunanidhi, breaking the practice
of senior Congress leaders visiting Tamil Nadu making a
courtesy call on him had raised many an eyebrow in political
circles.
Karunanidhi noted his party's friendship with Congress
was continuing from the days of late Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi to the present party chief and UPA Chairperson Sonia
Gandhi.
Bureau Report
First Published: Monday, November 16, 2009, 00:37