Centre in touch with TN govt to maintain peace: MHA

New Delhi, Oct 1 (UNI) In view of the Supreme Court's warning to the DMK government against defiance of its order, the Centre today said that it was in touch with the Tamil Nadu Government in an effort to maintain peace in the state and would continue to do so.

''We have been in touch with the Tamil Nadu Government in an effort to see that peace is maintained and if required, we will continue to remain in touch in future also,'' a Home Ministry spokesman told reporters, while reacting to the apex court's warning the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu of serious consequences in case it failed to implement the court's order restraining it from going ahead with the statewide bandh call over the Sethusamudram issue.

Taking a serious note of disobedience of its order restraining DMK from going ahead with its bandh call, a division bench of the Court had said that it amounted to nothing but contempt of court.

The court said going ahead with the bandh call amounted to complete breakdown of constitutional machinery in Tamil Nadu and the UPA government at the Centre should not shy away from imposing President's Rule in the state.

Earlier, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said the Tamil Nadu government had not violated any court order, indicating that there was no question of imposing President's Rule in the state.

Mr Dasmunsi said Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and other state leaders were only observing a non-violent fast which represented the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi.

Meanwhile, the Congress said there is no need for the dismissal of the Tamil Nadu government in the wake of the Supreme Court's ''oral observation''. Whether the Karunanidhi government violated the Supreme Court ban on bandhs would be decided by the court at the end of the hearing of arguments and only the final order of the court was binding on the Centre or the state, AICC spokesman Abishek Singhvi said.

The DMK had announced a state-wide bandh for today to press for the early completion of the Sethusamudram Canal Project, but the apex court had yesterday restrained it from going ahead with the move.

UNI