"Certainly not. Tamil Nadu is not in favour of talks with Karnataka on the issue," Tamil Nadu PWD Minister Durai Murugan told reporters when asked about Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's statement to this effect.
He said that the Cauvery issue did not figure when Kumaraswamy spoke to Karunanidhi over phone on Tuesday and they exchanged Ugadi greetings. Murugan, who led a delegation of MPs belonging to the Democratic Progressive Alliance to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Parliament House, said that his State would be seeking clarifications from the Tribunal on the final award.
Asked whether Tamil Nadu wanted early notification of the final award, he said that after the stipulated 90 days time, the state would insist on the Tribunal for the speedy implementation of the final award.
Charging Karnataka with adopting an "obstructionist" attitude to arrive at any settlement in the water dispute, Murugan, joined by all Central Ministers from the state, said that the Centre should not yield to Karnataka pressure of not to notify the award.