Indicating an unease in ties between his party and the Congress, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam President M Karunanidhi on Sunday night skipped a dinner hosted for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh by Governor S S Barnala in Chennai.
The chief minister's office said Karunanidhi could not attend the dinner at the Raj Bhavan owing to prior commitment.
Karunanidhi, a key ally of the United Progressive Alliance, was busy attending a book release function by his close friend and renowned poet Vairamuthu.
However, Karunanidhi met the Prime Minister at 8:30 am on Monday at the Raj Bhavan.
During the meeting, Karunanidhi is believed to have requested the Prime Minister to release more funds for relief works in the districts, which faced the monsoon fury last month.
There have been signs of unease in ties between the DMK and Congress over the alleged scam in 2G spectrum allocation, on which Parliament was stalled during the winter session.
Former telecom minister A Raja, a DMK representative, was forced to resign from the cabinet in the wake of allegations involving him in the scam that has dented the image of the UPA government.
Deputy Chief Minister and Karunanidhi's son M K Stalin was among those who received the Prime Minister, who arrived in the city this evening on a two-day visit to attend the 98th Indian Science Congress.
