Ram Sethu controversy set to get more intense

When asked if he was ruling out scope for change in alignment, Union Shipping Minister and DMK leader, T R Baalu told reporters “Don’t put your words in my mouth. I will wait for the apex court orders and then chalk out the future course of action.”

He said his leader’s remarks were out of anguish to clarify that the party’s intention was to carry out a developmental project and not to demolish the Adam’s bridge.

“We are going ahead with the project and my ministry will endeavour to complete it by December next year. There is no need for any rescheduling, though there has been a minor setback to the project,” he said.

Karunanidhi’s remarks that there was no proof for existence of Lord Ram and the Ram Sethu was only man-made drew widespread protests from Sangh Parivar outfits.

His remarks made a former BJP MP Vedanti to issue a fatwa for beheading him, which in turn sparked off protests from the DMK and its ally PMK. While senior DMK leader had announced that he would lead a picketing programme in front of the BJP office here if the fatwa was not withdrawn, the PMK founder described it as “barbaric”.