Kanimozhi chargesheet: DMK undecided, will ‘weigh pros and cons’

With Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi chargesheeted in the 2G spectrum case, the DMK on Monday decided to hold a meeting of its top leadership on Wednesday to decide on the next course of action. While sources in the party said that steps such as withdrawal of support to the UPA government was unlikely, there is a sense of unease in the DMK camp which could cause friction in ties with the Congress in the coming days.


Hours after the chargesheet was filed, the DMK leadership went into a huddle at Karunanidhi’s residence. In what is being seen as a veiled attack on the UPA, the DMK said the questioning of Dayalu Ammal, Kanimozhi and Kalaignar TV managing director Sharad Kumar had been “heavily publicised” despite the channel providing documents to show that the Rs 200 crore “loan” was returned with interest to DB Realty.

“We will weigh the pros and cons of the development. We have not decided anything. We will discuss the issues with an open mind,” said DMK leader T R Baalu. Sources said a section in the party suspects a “deliberate design” behind the leak of the contents of the chargesheet before it was filed. Another section, sources said, is of the view that the party should wait till the results of the Assembly polls before taking any tough stand.

The possibility of the arrest of Kanimozhi appears to be the immediate concern of the DMK leadership now.

Upping the ante, AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa demanded that Kanimozhi, like all the others chargesheeted so far, should be arrested. She said, “All the other members of the Karunanidhi family, who were direct or indirect beneficiaries in the gargantuan scam should also be arrested.” She raised questions as to why Karunanidhi’s wife Dayalu Ammal, who owns 60 per cent stake in Kalaignar TV, was not chargesheeted. Jayalalithaa said the second chargesheet indicates that a “clear kickback link” has been established between some key beneficiaries of the spectrum largesse doled out by former Telecom minister A Raja and the Karunanidhi family. The AIADMK chief said Ammal and Kanimozhi held stakes in Kalaignar TV not in their individual capacities. While Kanimozhi represented herself and her mother Rajathi, the 60 per cent stake held by Ammal represented the “combined stake-holdinag of six individuals — Ammal, Karunanidhi and their children, M K Alagiri, M K Stalin, M K Selvi and M K Thamizharasu”. She demanded that the operational licence granted to Kalaignar TV, which she claimed was started with graft money, should be withdrawn and the channel be taken off air immediately.

Commenting on the issue, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said a fair investigation should be done and no one should be left out due to coalition compulsions.

Party spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said, “We wonder whether there has been any political pressure as a result of which the CBI hesitated to include the name of Dayalu Ammal, who owns 60 per cent stake in Kalaignar TV.”