CHENNAI: Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M. Karunanidhi on Tuesday said Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had earlier said that the Rs.2-a-kg of rice was not feasible. Her announcement now convinced everyone that her scheme was not feasible, he remarked sarcastically.

Mr. Karunanidhi said that a Chief Minister could make an announcement only after a Cabinet decision. "I can make an announcement like this," he said. The Chief Minister should have made an announcement only after a Cabinet nod, he added.

Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram asked Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary Vaiko to clarify whether he thought the increased rice subsidy promised by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam was feasible.

Noting that Mr. Vaiko had criticised the DMK's offer of rice at Rs. 2-a-kg under the Public Distribution System as not feasible, he wanted to know what Mr. Vaiko thought of the AIADMK scheme. Under the scheme proposed by the DMK, the subsidy for 20 kg of rice to be given to each cardholder every month would be Rs. 30, and as per the scheme proposed by the AIADMK, the subsidy would be Rs.35. If Rs. 30 as subsidy for a cardholder a month was not feasible, how could Rs. 35 as subsidy be feasible, Mr. Chidambaram asked.

As Union Finance Minister, he had nothing to do with the subsidy borne by the States. When asked whether he thought the DMK's proposal was feasible, he said it was. There was no contradiction in his stand. Each State could decide on the extent of subsidy it wanted to give its people, he said. Although the Centre gave the States rice at a subsidised rate, it did not fix the price at which the rice should be given through the PDS.

First victory

During his election campaign in Chepauk, Tamil Nadu Congress Commitee president M. Krishnasswamy said Ms. Jayalalithaa's announcement of providing 10 kg rice free to family cardholders if voted back to power was made out of fear of defeat in the elections. It was strange that the Chief Minister, who ridiculed the DMK's poll assurance of Rs. 2-a-kg of rice for cardholders on account of its impossibility, suddenly changed her stand.

This was the first victory for the DPA front, he said.

`Violates model code'

In a separate statement, Pattali Makkal Katchi founder S. Ramadoss wondered how a Chief Minister could make such a promise when the election process was on without violating the model code of conduct. Noting that the promise did not figure in the AIADMK election manifesto, he said it should not have been introduced in the campaign stage. While there was nothing wrong in political parties promising the moon at the time of elections, such tall promises should be made only in the manifesto.

Especially, a Chief Minister or Ministers should not make such promises, he said. The promise was an attempt to fool the people, he added.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) central committee member T.K. Rengarajan said that by Ms. Jayalalithaa's announcement, it was clear that the Rs. 2-a-kg of rice was possible. He said that being convinced that her party would be routed, she would make more such announcements in desperation.

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