Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi held informal discussions on Friday with his senior party leaders on Congress party's offer of three cabinet ministers and four ministers of state in a bid to end the deadlock between the two parties on ministerial berths and portfolios.
 
DMK sources said Prime minister Manmohan Singh's reported "clarification" that he was not averse to accommodating former ministers T R Balu and A Raja was positive. Former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran, who came out of the meeting, told media-persons that "we hope issues will be resolved soon."

"In negotiations, there are always ups and downs and we are hopeful that the issues will be resolved," Maran said, adding the media speculation might hamper the negotations and appealed to journalists not to indulge in it.
 
Senior leaders N Veeraswamy, Karunanidhi's son M K Stalin, daughter Kanimozhi and grand nephew Dayanidhi Maran were among those who attended the meeting.
       
Earlier in the day, Karunanidhi returned to Chennai from Delhi after talks between Congress and DMK leaders failed to
make any headway on the number of ministerial berths and portfolios.