DMK president M Karunanidhi has extended tacit support to Union home minister P Chidambaram who is under fire from the opposition over his alleged role in the 2G spectrum scam.
Responding to reporters' queries in Chennai on the opposition demand for Chidambaram's resignation, the 88-year-old DMK patriarch said, "It is their opinion. My opinion is there should be no political interference in this case."
Karunanidhi whose daughter, Kanimozhi, is in jail in connection with funds transfer from a 2G scam accused company to Kalaignar TV in which she holds shares, said all efforts were on to secure bail for her.
In an apparent reference to the statement by telecom minister Kapil Sibal on zero losses, he said, "Initially, the loss estimates (due to spectrum pricing) were put at Rs 1.76 lakh crore (by CAG). Then they (CBI) said it was Rs 30,000 crore. Then they officially declared there was no (zero) loss."
Asked if Chidambaram was connected in "some way" in the scam which has come to haunt the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, he said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had reposed his faith in the home minister.
{{/usCountry}}Asked if Chidambaram was connected in "some way" in the scam which has come to haunt the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, he said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had reposed his faith in the home minister.
{{/usCountry}}On Chidambaram being the third minister from the state after A Raja and Dayanidhi Maran to have faced controversy on 2G spectrum allocation, Karunanidhi said he did not accept levelling charges against someone "to oust him from his post".
"I will not support any move to unseat a Union minister from Tamil Nadu and I do not want the issue to be politicised," he told reporters on Monday night.
He also took a dig at the media when he said that it should "not deliver verdict" as the courts were looking into the matter.
Asked if he "regretted" the UPA government not defending Raja and Maran like they were doing for Chidambaram, Karunanidhi said he did not use such incidents in politics to rejoice or regret.
Last week, a finance ministry document submitted before the Supreme Court had said the telecom ministry could have gone in for auction of 2G spectrum licenses had then finance minister Chidambaram insisted on it.