MADURAI/CHENNAI, JANUARY 10: The crisis in the DMK following the nomination of candidates for the two Rajya Sabha seats falling vacant in the state was resolved today when the angry office-bearers of the Madurai Urban District Unit of the party decided to withdraw their resignations.Their move followed party chief and CM M. Karuna-nidhi's assurance to them that he would consider the question of nominating District Secretary Kaveri Maniam for the Rajya Sabha seat next time.One of the heavyweights of the district and a confidant of Karunanidhi's son M.K. Azhagiri, Maniam was left out of the Rajya Sabha nominations this time, angering the DMK district unit. This was the third rebuff to Maniam, a party loyalist from the days of party founder C.N. Annadurai, who had earlier been denied party ticket to contest the Madurai Mayor's post and then for the Lok Sabha elections.Maniam quit yesterday as district secretary in protest and a host of leaders of the Madurai district unit of the DMK, including Mayor P.Kolandaivelu and Deputy Mayor `Misa' R. Pandiyan, followed suit.Karunanidhi, in consultation with party general secretary K. Anbazhagan, accepted the resignations.However, today, Pandiyan, who is also the Madurai Urban District Deputy Secretary, told UNI that they had all decided to withdraw their resignations after a meeting presided over by Maniam.Meanwhile, PMK leader S. Ramadoss, an ally of the DMK, has refused to comment on the latter's decision to keep both the RS seats for itself. He merely said: ``That was the DMK's decision.''Though Ramadoss confessed that the PMK had sought a seat for a party leader who had been defeated in the Pondicherry Lok Sabha elections, he said the PMK was not against allocation of the seat to other NDA allies.
