The only thing Congressmen were ready to say about the arrest of Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum case was that the DMK-Congress alliance?s loss in the recent assembly polls in Tamil Nadu couldn’t have come at a better time. ?Now, the DMK?s bargaining power at the Centre is much diminished and Jayalalithaa?s actions soon after taking over have doused much of the anger that could have been directed at the Centre,? said a senior Congress leader.
?And yes, now there is no question of the telecom portfolio going to any ally, it will stay with the Congress,? added the leader.
Top sources in the party say that Karunanidhi?s sons have counselled patience to their father, pointing out that in the vendetta-fuelled politics of Tamil Nadu, they are pretty much at a disadvantage now. ?The two sons have told an obviously distraught Karunanidhi that this was not the time to fight with the Congress,? said a source.
The arrest has cast quite a pall on the UPA-II government’s plan to splash out on its second anniversary on Sunday. PMO sources said that neither Mamata Banerjee who is hurt over the Congress? diminished presence at her swearing-in ceremony and DMK ministers, quite obviously gloomy after Friday?s court proceedings will be present at the dinner hosted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. ?A report to the people will be released at the dinner,? said a PMO official.
At the Centre, therefore, the Congress will take a ?law-taking-its-own-course? stance while at the same time making sure that the DMK ministers do not withdraw from the central government.
The DMK, on its part, has very few options, despite Karunanidhi?s anger over his daughter?s arrest. ?Jayalalithaa has already moved around most of the police and administrative officials in the state and also announced that she would be initiating the state takeover of cable networks in the state, a direct hit at the Sun TV-owned Sumangali cables,? said a source. To be out of power in both the Centre and the state is not something the DMK is contemplating at the moment.