Jayalalithaa seeks Chidambaram's resignation

LD JAYA
New Delhi, Jun 14 (PTI) Accusing Home Minister P
Chidambaram of getting himself elected to Parliament through
"fraudulent" means, south Indian state of Tamil Nadu Chief
Minister J Jayalalithaa Tuesday said his continuance in the
Union Council of Ministers was untenable and sought his
resignation.
"Our party has always maintained that Mr Chidambaram's
victory was through fraudulent means...his continuance in the
Union Council of Minsters is untenable," Jayalalithaa told
reporters at her maiden press conference in New Delhi after
assuming office last month.
"Mr Chidambaram was never elected to Parliament in
2009. He has played a fraud on the nation. Our party candidate
won the election," she said when pressed further on the issue.
The Chief Minister alleged that Chidambaram was
announced the successful candidate because of a fraud
committed by a data entry operator.
She also said that Dayanidhi Maran should step down
from the Union Cabinet over allegations of quid pro quo in the
2G scam and if he does not do on his own, the Prime Minister
should drop him.
LD JAYA 2 LAST
On whether there was a possibility of Congress and
AIADMK coming together again, Jayalalithaa said the DMK and
Congress continue to be partners and both parties have been
maintaining their alliance.
Asked whether she was open to the idea of aligning
with the Congress in the event of the DMK walking out, she
said, "I cannot answer hypothetical questions."
To a question whether she would meet Congress chief
Sonia Gandhi, she said as of today, Congress still has an
alliance with the DMK and Congress and DMK continue to be
partners in the coalition government at the Centre.
"In such a situation, it would be not be appropriate
for me to call on Sonia Gandhi."
To a volley of questions on whether Congress and
AIADMK could come together again and whether her offer of
support to Congress made in November, 2010 is still open, she
said the situation has completely changed since then.
"Much water has flown down the bridge. The offer was
made in a different situation," she said.
Earlier, during her meeting with the Prime Minister,
she proposed sending a delegation of Tamil Nadu MLAs to Sri
Lanka to see for themselves the condition in which Sri Lankan
Tamils displaced due to the decades-old civil war are living.
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