UPA-DMK alliance intact as of now, says Prime Minister

PM Manmohan Singh today said it was for the Congress high command to "take note" of the offer of support made by AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa in return for the sacking of Telecom Minister A Raja but added "as of now" the alliance with DMK stands. Govt defends Raja | What's 2G scam

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said it was for the Congress high command to "take note" of the offer of support made by AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa in return for the sacking of Telecom Minister A Raja but added "as of now" the alliance with DMK stands.

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"This is a subject I am hearing for the first time. It is for the Congress high command to take note of it. I don't know what Dr Jayalalithaa has offered. We are in alliance with DMK and that alliance stands as of now", Singh told reporters accompanying him on his return from Seoul where he attended the G-20 Summit.

Earlier, when asked what he was planning to do about Raja after the CAG report on 2G Spectrum allocation and the alleged role of the Telecom Minister, the Prime Minister said "Parliament is in session. It is not proper for me to comment on a subject which is also probably in the court".

Unfazed by the political storm over 2G spectrum allocation, the government and DMK chief M Karunanidhi today came out in support of embattled Telecom Minister A Raja who defiantly ruled out his resignation.

"He (Raja) is not a criminal. We are not guilty. He just went by the procedures set by his predecessors Pramod Mahajan and Arun Shourie of the previous NDA Government. What is wrong in that? They came up with 'first come, first served' policy," the DMK chief told reporters in Chennai.

Parliament has been rocked over the last few days on the 2G Spectrum allocation controversy with a combative opposition demanding Raja's dismissal.

Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily also came out in Raja's defence, saying the CAG report on the Spectrum allocation cannot be termed as an "indictment".