Gujral delays departure from Chennai to meet Karunanidhi

CHENNAI, Nov 15: In a significant development, Prime Minister I K Gujral delayed his departure from Chennai by over three-and-a-half hours on Saturday and met Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M Karunanidhi for an hour-long closed door’ discussion at the Raj Bhavan.

Gujral’s long wait and the lengthy meeting assume importance in the light of the controversial Jain Commission’s interim report on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The two leaders are understood to have discussed the implications, on the United Front Ministry, of the Panel’s findings indicting DMK and Karunanidhi among others for their support to the LTTE, the main suspect in the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.

Both Gujral and Karunanidhi did not talk to the media after their meeting, on the ground that it was a solemn occasion in view of the funeral of the Minister of State N V N Somu earlier in the day.

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However Gujral is learnt to have to briefed Karunanidhi on the discussions he had in Delhi with Congress President Sitaram Kesri and other Congress leaders on the Jain Panel’s interim findings and the stand of the United Front Government.

The Prime Minister was to have left by the Indian Air Force IL-76 MD aircraft at 2.30 p.m.