The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : NLC issue: the way events unfolded

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 07, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

NLC issue: the way events unfolded

R.K. Radhakrishnan

Innocuous start to a day of rapid developments

CHENNAI: A day of rapid developments began innocuously. Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi arrived at the party headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, around 11-30 a.m. after finishing some official business relating to Friday's Cabinet meet.

At the party headquarters, it was brought to his notice that people expected him to come out with a strong stand on the Neyveli Lignite Corporation issue and that he was accused of changing stance.

At this, the Chief Minister told The Hindu that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam had been consistent in its stance on profit making public sector undertakings. There should be no sale of these enterprises, the DMK had held and this was a fact that the party had reiterated even in its manifesto. When this was the case and when the DMK's past record also had been consistent when it came to workers' welfare and labour issues, where was the question of the party changing stance, he asked.

The Chief Minister said that he had written on the issue to the Prime Minister repeatedly and had also talked to party leaders and Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

When he learnt that workers were not agreeable to the suggestion that they be given shares, he had conveyed this to the Centre and had asked them to withdraw the move to disinvest from the NLC. Mr. Karunanidhi said that right through he had consistently held that the workers' demands had to be conceded.

A short while later, he told The Hindu that he had asked the DMK Union Ministers in New Delhi, Dayanidhi Maran and A. Raja to meet the Prime Minister and convey the position of the DMK — that it could not continue as part of the United Progressive Alliance Government.

The Ministers reached the Prime Minister's residence shortly after noon to convey the news.

A few hours later, news reached Chennai that the Government had decided to put the disinvestment decision on hold.

Mr. Karunanidhi came back to his office and was closeted in meetings. Later, as he was leaving the Chief Minister's chamber at around 6 p.m., he said that he had written to the Prime Minister, the Congress president and the Union Finance Minister, thanking them.

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