Kanimozhi's name in charge-sheet angers DMK, may quit UPA

Chennai: Upset over the naming of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi in the 2G scam charge sheet, UPA’s key ally DMK on Monday decided to convene a high-level committee meeting on Wednesday to plan its future course of action. Shortly after the CBI filed the additional charge sheet in a Delhi court, top DMK brass including patriarch Karunanidhi, went into a huddle at his residence in Chennail to take stock of the situation. Simultaneously, the party noted that the questioning of Kanimozhi and Karunanidhi’s wife Dayalu had been made into a “publicity exercise of gargantuan proportions”. “… Even after it had been proved in a transparent manner that the Rs 200 crore loan given by a firm (DB Reality to Kalaingar TV) was returned with interest and that there was nothing hanky panky and no conspiracy, Dayalu and Kanimozhi were questioned (by CBI)…,” a DMK statement said. [caption id=“attachment_2136” align=“alignleft” width=“320” caption=“Kanimozhi finds herself in the 2G muddle. PTI Photo”]  [/caption] As the stage was set for CBI to file a charge sheet including Kanimozhi’s name, raising questions about its political fallout, Karunanidhi earlier parried questions about DMK mulling quitting the UPA ministry in the event of his family members’ names figuring in the charge sheet. Responding to speculation about DMK’s possible exit from the UPA cabinet, he shot back “Is that your desire?” “Being a woman, you should not talk as if you are heartless,” he said when women reporters persisted with their queries about 2G and his equations with the UPA. In an immediate fallout of the charge sheet, DMK general secretary K. Anbalagan said, “The high-level committee will meet at 10 am on April 27 to discuss and decide the future course of action.” He said the recent questioning of Dayalu, Kanimozhi and Sarath Kumar, who hold stakes in the Kalaingar TV, had been highly publicized blowing it out of proportions despite the channel providing all documents to show that the Rs200 crore “loan” had been returned to the firm – DB Reality. The naming of Kanimozhi and Sarath Kumar, MD of the channel, in the charge sheet had also been given high publicity, the release said. Under the given circumstances, the party had convened the high-level committee meeting, he said. CBI has accused Kanimozhi, Rajya Sabha MP, of entering into a criminal conspiracy with prime accused former telecom minister A. Raja besides charging her under the Prevention of Corruption Act for taking illegal gratification through Kalaignar TV. However, the supplementary charge sheet does not name Dayalu as an accused but mentioned her as one of the witnesses in the case. PTI