Strongly backing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for a second successive term, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M Karunanidhi ruled out support to any other person for the top post.
"Nobody other than Manmohan Singh can become prime minister," Karunanidhi, whose party is a key ally of the United Progressive Alliance at the Centre, told media-persons in Chennai. Further emphasising his support for Singh, Karunanidhi said, "nobody other than Manmohan Singh will be the prime minister."
He said the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance would retain power at the centre and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's general council would decide on its participation in the next government. The 85-year old DMK patriarch, who went on an indefinite fast on Monday demanding immediate ceasefire in Sri Lanka and called it off six hours later after Colombo announced ending the combat operations, asserted the Lankan Tamils issue would not be a major election plank in the state.
He slammed All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief J Jayalalithaa for demanding the creation of a separate Ealam as the solution for the ethnic problem in Sri Lanka, charging her with raking up the issue just for electoral gains.
"Those who had been opposing the concept (of Eelam) tooth and nail are now supporting it with an eye on votes," he said, adding her demand for Eelam would not have any impact on the outcome of elections in Tamil Nadu.
