Natwar-Karunakaran meet on November 18

New Delhi, Nov 16 (UNI) A significant move, Former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh will hold discussions with former Congress leader K Karunakaran at Thiruvananthapuram on November 18.

Talking to UNI, Mr Singh confirmed the meeting with the former four-time Chief Minister of Kerala and his son and former Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee(I) chief K Muralidharan at Mr Karunakaran's residence.

''I am going to Thiruvananthapuram with the twin purpose of meeting my old friend Karunakaran and to have a brief holiday,'' he said.

Asked if the meeting had any political significance, Mr Singh said : ''of course, there is...but don't exaggerate it.'' After the meeting with Mr Karunakaran, he would spend a three-day holiday in Kerala before leaving for Delhi on November 22.

The meeting between 88-year-old Karunakaran and Mr Singh will take place close on the heels of the former's political outfit, Democratic Indira Congress (DIC-K), merging with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) a few days ago.

Mr Karunakaran left the Congress Party, with which he had a close association of nearly six decades, following differences with Party President Sonia Gandhi. He had floated his DIC(K) on May one, 2005.

It is going to be the first meeting between Mr Singh and Mr Karunakaran after the former fell apart with the Congress in the wake of the Volcker controversy that led to his resignation from the Manmohan Singh cabinet as External Affairs Minister.

Mr Singh was suspended from the Congress Party and served a show cause notice by the Disciplinary Action Committee (DAC) for some of his open remarks against the Prime Minister.

Mr Singh had replied to the show cause notice, but the DAC had not taken any final decision in the issue.

UNI SH AT BD1742