Chennai ,March 13: The straws of suspicion over the Congress-DMK alliance, seen recently after AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa tried to woo Congress president Sonia Gandhi, blew away on Saturday as the allies, who had gathered on the glittering dais for the inauguration of the Rs 425-crore Tamil Nadu Assembly/secretariat complex, proclaimed loud and clear that their ties were stronger than ever.
A beaming DMK chief minister M. Karunanidhi even ditched his wheelchair to trust the feet that felt stronger as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hailed him as a “giant of Tamil Nadu politics” and Mrs Gandhi said he was a “pillar of strength” for the ruling alliance.
Speaking first, Mr Karunanidhi said a number of attempts had been made to fracture the DMK-Congress alliance, but these had failed because of the warmth and firm resolve of the partners. He was making a clear reference to Ms Jayalalithaa’s meeting with Mrs Gandhi during the diamond jubilee celebrations of the Election Commission and her overtures to the Congress president to join hands with her.
Mr Karunanidhi said the DMK-Congress alliance had been “scoring success after success” since winning the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. His confidence that the team would remain united only got stronger with the proclamations that soon followed from the allies. “I want to say that ever since we formed the government in 2004, Mr Karunanidhi has been a pillar of strength to the Prime Minister and to me and the government. Every time a problem happened, the person the Prime Minister contacted or telephoned was Mr Karunanidhi. We greatly appreciate his support,” said Mrs Gandhi, acknowledging in particular the DMK’s support for the passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Rajya Sabha.
Dr Singh was liberal in praising his Dravidian ally, declaring that he had turned to him often for advice and the UPA government had “greatly benefited from the wisdom and leadership of Kalaignar Karunandhiji.” He added, to huge applause from the large gathering: “We are truly fortunate that we can draw on his experience and wisdom in managing the affairs of our country.”
Age Correspondent