Congress not to share power with DMK in TN

New Delhi, June 5 (UNI) Setting at rest speculation about the Congress joining the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today said the agreement was that his party would extend outside support to the Congress dispensation in Pondicherry in return for a similar support in Tamil Nadu.

''This is a thing we have decided already. We support them in Pondicherry and they support us in Tamil Nadu. It is unconditional support in both the cases," he told mediapersons after his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi, amid reports that the local Congressmen were in favour of participating in the DMK government whose strength in the Assembly is 28 seats short of a simple majority.

Asked if his government would be stable without giving ministerial berths to parties like the Congress who together fought the election under the banner of DPA, Dr Karunanaidhi said he was not bothered about the longevity of his government but wanted to serve the people the best possible way as long as he was at the helm.

He dismissed the suggestion that he was running minority government.

In his first visit to the national capital city after taking over as Chief Minister for the fifth time last month, Dr Karunanidhi met President A P J Abdul Kalam, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Power MInister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad.

Dr Karunanidhi told mediapersons immediately after his meeting with Ms Gandhi at her official 10 Janpath residence that the issue of power sharing in Tamil Nadu did not figure in the 30-minute-long meeting.

''We have not discussed the issue of Congress participation in our government,'' Dr Karunanidhi said.

''A decision in this regard has been taken before elections.

Therefore, there is no need for a discussion on the issue,'' Union Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran, who accompanied Mr Karunanidhi at the meeting, said.

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