'Kanimozhi not reason for freeze'

(April 08, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Tuesday denied the allegation made by AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa that he had put the Hogenakkal project on hold only to get a Union Minister post for his daughter Kanimozhi.

.Speaking to reporters at the Secretariat after Jayalalithaa staged a walkout in the Assembly, Karunanidhi said, ‘it is a habit for the AIADMK leader to attend the Assembly once in a while, act against the rules and make allegations against the government.’

Stating that the former Chief Minister staged a walkout only to leave for an outstation trip, Karunanidhi wanted to know whether the Karnataka government had the powers to make Kanimozhi a Central Minister.

‘I never said that the Hogenakkal drinking project was dropped. I had made it clear that it was being put on hold till the Karnataka elections were over.

This was only to safeguard the lives and belongings of Tamils living in the neighbouring State.’

On the charges made by the AIADMK and the MDMK that he had cheated Tamilnadu over the issue, the Chief Minister wanted to know why the AIADMK was opposing the Sethusamudram project, which was aimed at the welfare of entire Tamilnadu.

To a question on actor Rajinikanth’s speech at the hunger protest organised by the film industry and the reactions it had created in Karnataka, the Chief Minister said the actor himself had responded to it.

When reporters pointed out that protests were being organised in Karnataka even after the ‘temporary halt’ of the project, Karunanidhi said it was a common practice there to act against Tamil and Tamils.

On former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna’s statement that he would approach the Supreme Court over the issue, Karunanidhi said,

‘Krishna had personally told me not to believe the reports and assured that he would not knock on the doors of the court’

Taking an apparent dig at the BJP for allegedly taking a doublestand on the Hogenakkal row, the Chief Minister said it was not good for the integrity and sovereignty of the country.
- Sri Lanka Guardian