After stirring the hornet’s nest by making reference to rival Jayalalithaa a few days ago, Congress General secretary Rahul Gandhi on Friday sought to assuage its ally the DMK, saying it is very much its partner in the elections.
“We are part of an alliance. We are fighting the elections with partner DMK,” he said at a public meeting here in support of Home Minister and Congress candidate P Chidambaram.
Gandhi’s remarks assume significance as the DMK is said to be upset by his reference to Jayalalithaa in a press conference in Delhi on Tuesday which were interpreted as overtures to the AIADMK for a post-poll alliance.
A day after Gandhi’s remarks, Congress President Sonia Gandhi cancelled her visit to Chennai for a joint public meeting with the DMK chief M Karunanidhi, once again fuelling speculation that all is not well with the alliance.
However, the Congress legislature party leader in Tamil Nadu D Sudarsanam announced on Friday that Sonia Gandhi and Karunanidhi would share a platform on Sunday in Chennai.
Referring to the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, a major plank of political parties in Tamil Nadu, Rahul Gandhi said the UPA government has taken “all steps possible” to mitigate the sufferings of the Tamils in the island.
{{/usCountry}}Referring to the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, a major plank of political parties in Tamil Nadu, Rahul Gandhi said the UPA government has taken “all steps possible” to mitigate the sufferings of the Tamils in the island.
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