New Delhi, March 08: The impasse between the Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) over seat-sharing for the upcoming Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu continued, Tuesday, despite extensive talks between the two sides to find a way out.
DMK ministers Dayanidhi Maran and MK Alagiri met Congress President Sonia Gandhi late on Monday night, but the meeting seems to have been inconclusive.
A 24-hour deadline has been set to chalk out a compromise, failing which the DMK ministers will resign from the UPA government at the Centre. The party would, however, continue to provide ‘issue-based support’ to the Congress-led government.
A DMK statement had said that the Congress demand for 63 seats even after the DMK expressed its readiness to concede 60 showed it was not keen on having it as an ally.
“Hence we have decided to pull out,” the statement had said.
The DMK currently has six ministers in the Union Cabinet, including Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister MK Alagiri and Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran – and four junior ministers – SS Palanimanickam (Finance), S Jagathrakshakan (Information and Broadcasting), D Napoleon (Social Justice and Empowerment) and S Gandhiselvan (Health and Family Welfare).
The junior ministers today postponed their return to Chennai, suggesting that parleys are on at the highest levels to sort the issue out.
Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu M K Stalin said that Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee telephoned DMK chief M Karunanidhi twice and urged him not to pull out his ministers from the cabinet during the Budget Session and sought a day’s time to resolve problems.
The decision to pull out of the UPA government was taken at a DMK leadership meeting chaired by party president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, and attended by senior leaders including Deputy Chief Minister MK Stalin held in Chennai on Saturday.
—–Agencies