TN CM warns allies against destabilising Govt

Chennai, Aug 29 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today warned allies against destabilising the Government, even as his senior cabinet colleague Arcot N Veerasamy indicated that they were free to leave the DMK led front in the state.

Addressing a function here, Mr Karunanidhi, referring to agitations launched by its allies, including the Left parties and the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) against the government, wondered why these parties were throwing such challenges as he was only interested in providing good governance.

'' What mistake have we committed except for wanting to provide good governance,'' the DMK chief asked, adding that whenever he thought how he would face the challenges single handedly, the strengh of the party came to his mind and made him fearless.

'' When I see the faces of the countless number of youth and the warriors in the party, I fear nobody,'' Mr Karunanidhi said amid loud cheers.

The DMK supremo endorsed the view expressed by Mr Veerasamy at a function here last night when he launched a broadside against the allies, especially the PMK, for trying to create problems for the DMK.

Pointing out that he was in public life for seven decades, Mr Karunanidhi said except for the first 13 years, he had been serving the Tamil people and would continue to spend his remaining days for them.

Mr Veerasamy, addressing a party function organised in connection with Mr Karunanidhi's golden jubilee in the state assembly here last evening, said the DMK should face the next assembly elections without any alliance and form the government on its own.

''If we contest all the 234 assembly seats, we can win atleast 150 seats and form the government on our own,'' he said.

He however said the DMK should have alliances like the Congress as President Sonia Gandhi considered Mr Karunanidhi a fatherly figure and as long as she was at the helm of affairs, the DMK's alliance with the Congress would continue.

Referring to the protest for the Titanium dioxide project, to come up in Tuticorin and Tirunelveli districts, Mr Veerasamy said in the pretext of seeking public opinion, the allies were opposing the project.

The senior Minister also took serious exception to PMK founder leader S Ramadoss asking the local people whether the state government had shown them the copy of the agreement it had signed with Tata Steel for implementing the project.

'' But whatever the people say, the Titanium project will come up and nobody can prevent it,'' Mr Veerasamy said.

Meanwhile, Dr Ramadoss warned his party would launch an agitation if the government tried to set up a satellite township at Tiruporur, near the city. This would amount to betrayal of the people who voted the DMK-led DPA to power, he said.

The party also filed a case against the Government in connection with sand quarrying in the Madras High Court and the case was slated to come up for hearing tomorrow.

UNI