Kanimozhi part of 2G scam? DMK surprised, Karuna anguished

The Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam on Wednesday decided not to walk out of the United Progressive Alliance at the Centre over the 2G issue and decided to fight the case legally.

After a meeting of the party's high-level committee, DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi expressed 'anguish' over the inclusion of Kanimozhi's name in the second charge-sheet in the spectrum allocation case by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The DMK would fight the issue legally to prove the innocence of his daughter and the party in court.

"We will take legal steps to prove the truth," he told reporters.

Ever since the supplementary charge-sheet naming Kanimozhi as an accused was filed in a Delhi court on Monday, there has been speculation that the DMK might adopt a hard-line and quit the central ministry.

Asked whether Kanimozhi would appear before a CBI court at Delhi on May 6, where she has been summoned, he replied in the affirmative.

"She is not Jayalalithaa to ignore the court's summons," he said in a reference to the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader seeking exemption from personal appearance in the disproportionate wealth case against her in a Bangalore court.

Asked whether Kanimozhi and Kalaignar TV CEO Sarath Kumar, who had also been summoned, would seek anticipatory bail, Karunanidhi said the lawyers would decide about it.

To a query, Karunanidhi said the party did not face any embarrassment on the issue.

The meeting adopted a resolution saying the 2G case was being used to defame the DMK which would seek legal recourse. It also expressed surprise over the inclusion of Kanimozhi's name in the supplementary charge sheet.

Meanwhile, the CBI has alleged that Kanimozhi was an 'active brain' behind the operation of Kalaignar TV and actively pursued, with intermediaries and her party, the reappointment of 2G scam accused A Raja as telecom minister.

In its 53-page chargesheet, the CBI has alleged that during investigations, it found that in 2007, Kanimozhi, along with other promoters, helmed Kalaignar TV after they left Sun TV network.

"She has also been in regular touch with Raja regarding the launching of Kalaignar TV and other pending works related to the TV," the CBI, which named her as an accused, claimed in the chargesheet.

The DMK MP was also an initial director of the company but resigned as her clearance from the ministry of home affairs was pending and that would have resulted in a delay in launching the channel, the CBI alleged.

"Investigations have also revealed that the accused Kanimozhi was a stakeholder of Kalaignar TV to the tune of 20 per cent and was an active brain behind its operations. She was widely covered by the Kalaignar Seiithigal (news) channel," said the CBI.

"She also actively pursued with the intermediaries and DMK headquarters, the matter regarding reappointment of accused as minister of communications and information technology in 2009, which clearly establishes the strong association of accused Kanimozhi and Raja," the agency alleged.

The CBI has said that the DMK MP should be tried for allegedly entering into a criminal conspiracy for taking gratification other than legal remuneration in respect of an official act.