Unmoved by conciliatory voices from the BJP camp, the two DMK ministers in the NDA Government—Environment Minister T.R. Baalu and Minister of State for Health A. Raja—called on Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee here today and put in their papers.The PM forwarded these to the President and a Rashtrapati Bhawan announcement later said these had been accepted.Though the DMK ignored the call by BJP president M. Venkaiah Naidu in Chennai today to return to the NDA-fold, there was a clear effort by the Dravidian party to part ways with the BJP without any bitterness. Therefore, even when Baalu cited differences with the Tamil Nadu BJP as a reason for its withdrawal from the NDA, he stressed that there were no problems in the relationship between DMK chief M. Karunanidhi and Vajpayee.The MDMK is likely to be the next to withdraw its ministers—M. Kannappan and Gingee N. Ramachandran—from the Vajpayee Government. The two are expected to meet chief Vaiko, who is in Vellore jail under POTA, shortly and announce their decision in a couple of days.When asked by reporters after his meeting with theNDA, Baalu said: ‘‘We will be like the Telugu Desam Party. We are going to give only outside support.’’He said the PM’s first response to their resignations was ‘Why didn’t you inform me earlier?’. They, in turn, told him it was ‘‘a party decision’’ and they had to abide by it. That there was therefore no question of re-considering. Baalu added that when he asked Vajpayee if he had anything to convey to Karunanidhi, the PM said: ‘‘I am not going to accept your resignations.’’While this was apparently said in a lighter vein, Vajpayee’s remark is being interpreted as an indication of his desire to keep the DMK in the coalition government.A reporter sought to know why the DMK had backed the Government on the POTA amendment Bill in Parliament when it had launched an agitation in Tamil Nadu to press for its revocation. Baalu said the DMK indeed favoured a repeal of POTA, but the amendment only sought to provide some relief to a few leaders detained under the Act.This far, all is fine for both the DMK and MDMK. However, if the DMK and Congress decide to join hands, the pro-LTTE line of the MDMK may put Sonia Gandhi in a spot.
