Amid speculation that she will succeed A Raja as Telecom Minister, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi said a decision on the issue will be taken by party president M Karunanidhi, even as she made it clear that the alliance with Congress is "as strong as ever".
Another DMK MP and former Union Minister T R Baalu, who is also said to be in the race to succeed Raja, also spoke in the same vein and said as of now the plum Telecom portfolio will be with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
A day after Raja resigned under relentless pressure from opposition parties, speculation was rife that either Kanimozhi or Baalu may be inducted into the Union Cabinet to fill the slot vacated by Raja. Besides Raja, DMK has two cabinet ministers and four ministers of state. Both Kanimozhi and Baalu said a decision on a new nominee will be taken by Karunanidhi and maintained that Raja and the party took the "conscious" decision just to allow smooth functioning of Parliament.
"It is a decision of DMK and Mr Raja that Parliament should function smoothly. It is a decision taken by them," shesaid. On speculation that she was one of the prime contenders for a cabinet berth, she said, "Let us not speculate much into the issue. I have no comments to offer onthis issue." She said her party leaders will take a call on the new nominee. Baalu said, "The conscious decision
On the alliance with Congress, Kanimozhi sought to dispel suggestions that relations between the two parties have strained. "As far as the alliance with Congress is concerned, it is as strong as ever," the DMK leader said. Party sources say the Telecom Ministry will be with the prime minister at least till the end of Parliament session and a decision on nominee would be taken in the mean time. They said Karunanidhi is not keen on naming Kanimozhi as the party nominee to the cabinet slot vacated by Raja as he wants avoid criticism that he has again favoured his familythan the party.
"And to bring in Kanimozhi at this juncture is not a good idea. It is not the right time for her entry into the Central government," a senior leader said. Sources said Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran, who held the Telecom portfolio for three years from 2004 to 2007, may not be keen to return to Sanchar Bhawan, given the controversies surrounding the 2G spectrum allocation. He is also said to have an uneasy relationship with Raja ever since the latter succeeded him in the wake of a family feud in 2007. Baalu may be in the list of nominees, but DMK may also go for a new face.
