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PMK pulls out of NDA

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi

The constant sniping between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Pattali Makkal Katchi had its reverberations at the Centre, when two PMK ministers of state resigned from the Union council of ministers on Monday. With this, the five-member PMK announced its decision to pull out of the National Democratic Alliance.

Ministers of State E Ponnuswamy and N T Shanmugam met Prime Minister A B Vajpayee on Monday and handed over their resignation to him. Vajpayee, however, has rejected their resignation, it is learnt.

The ministers reportedly expressed their displeasure at the style of functioning of their senior partner in Tamil Nadu, the DMK.

Reliable sources said the two PMK ministers resigned from the National Democratic Alliance government as they felt that the PMK was being sidelined by the DMK which leads the alliance in Tamil Nadu.

The DMK was reportedly not conceding the number of seats demanded by the PMK in the forthcoming assembly elections in the state, and the latter favours a tie-up with Jayalalitha's All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

The resignation by the two ministers followed shortly after PMK leader S Ramadoss met Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Monday morning and informed him about withdrawing from the government.

After this development, the PMK played hide and seek with the capital's media, which had congregated outside Ponnuswamy's house. As the duo finally emerged from inside, Ponnuswamy told newsmen, "Shanmugham and I have resigned from the NDA, according to instructions from our party leader, Dr Ramadoss."

Beyond this the duo were not willing to say much, fobbing off all queries with the standard reply, "I am not in a position to say anything now, everything will be revealed in Madras on Tuesday by my party leader who will answer all your queries then." Dr Ramadoss is expected to address the media in Madras on Tuesday.

While sources in the BJP said the PMK has levelled certain conditions before its members rescind their decision, the two said there was no question of levelling any condition.

Sources said the withdrawal of support by the 5-member PMK will not affect the NDA in a major way in the Lok Sabha. What the PMK will have succeeded in doing is to expose the chinks in the hither-to united NDA grouping.

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