Niira Radia: Shankar… Hi.
Shankkar Aiyar: Are you still in some serious meeting and all?
Niira Radia: No no no no.. I wanted to tell you I saw you on air
Shankkar Aiyar: Oh
Niira Radia: The thing is that… there are two things that are happening. One, the Congress has not ever talked about Balu or about Raja or anything like that… seriously…
Shankkar Aiyar: Yeah
Niira Radia: Right? They have not said that. Their main…
Shankkar Aiyar: That’s what I told them last night. I don’t know whether you were… Last night I said on air, I said I am a little mystified as to how everybody seems to know what the Prime Minister has told, except the two ministers and the DMK itself because.. if…
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Niira Radia: Karunanidhi… Yeah!
Shankkar Aiyar: Yeah …if the Prime Minister said so then the Congress party should come out and say “Ok, we don’t… we have expressed that these two ministers should not be there. Come out and say it?!
Niira Radia: That’s right.
Shankkar Aiyar: If you don’t say it, then what are you admitting? That you lived with a corrupt … uh… minister through five years and couldn’t do about anything about it?
Niira Radia: Hmm Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Toh maine bolaa yeh sab faaltugiri hai… (so I said that all this is nonsense)
Niira Radia: Hmm
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Shankkar Aiyar: Tumhare apne ministers kaun sa bahut saare efficient hain. (Your own ministers are not so efficient) You’ve lived with a disaster called Shivraj Patil for five years.
Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: toh… (so)
Niira Radia: Sushil Kumar Shinde
Shankkar Aiyar: Haan (Yes)
Niira Radia: Haan… Hai na… (Yes. Isn’t it?) So now, the thing is that what they have done is… they have only given a hint by… to… through Maran and again they are talking to the wrong people. You see what’s happening is, all these messaging coming out that they accept Maran and they don’t want the other two…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: The other thing is that Azhagiri is a… see… mass leader. Right?
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: And and basically the problem is that there was Balu, Raja and Maran. That’s how it got settled.
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: Azhagiri MOS independent…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: and even Kani MOS
Shankkar Aiyar: Correct… Hmm
Niira Radia: So the… so the view was that when Azhagiri is… so Azhagiri followers and the DMK leaders in Tamil Nadu said, you know, he is a… such a senior leader…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: …how can you give an MOS as you take Maran out of that. Or you drop Balu. Because Raja they can’t because of Dalit.
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Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: So you drop one of them.
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: which is where then Selvi started intervening and saying “I will commit suicide… I will do this”. Poor old man is in… under so much pressure.
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: Separately, Congress told Maran that we do not want to give infrastructure portfolios…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: to Balu or to you… that’s what the Prime Minister wishes which he has not relayed to Karunanidhi. Abhii problem kyaa hai, sab Darte hain Karunanidhi ko kaun jaake bolega.
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
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Niira Radia: Congress is not talking directly to Karunanidhi. They have to talk to… to him.
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: They have to…
Shankkar Aiyar: Usmen bhi ek difficulty hai udhar. (Even there is a problem) I have… I have met Karunanidhi several times and despite my knowledge of Tamil, some of the times, you know, I can’t understand what he says.
Niira Radia: No, but then toh he can ask Kani who is a neutral person.
Shankkar Aiyar: Haan… (Yeah) No! So hamesha main saath me meraa ek laRkaa hai Anand Natarajan karke udhar. Usko saath me le jata hoon (giggles) (So I take this guy with me, called Anand Natarajan there) Just in case I don’t un… tsk.. Toh dekho… (So, look) I agree with you that they should talk to him directly instead of this. Main kal usko… Vishal ko phone karke wahi bataya. Maine bola wo Chintu ro raha hai. Bol raha hai ke saale sab log kyon Daya ki baat maante hain. Maine bola wo frame mein hai, tu frame mein nahi hai… (I called up Vishal yesterday and told him the same thing. I said that Chintu has been crying. Has been saying that why all these people agree to what Daya says. I told him that he is in the frame, you are not)
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Niira Radia: Hmm… Can I…
Shankkar Aiyar: To bola haan ye to issue hai. Toh maine bola dekh abhi wo official negotiator kaun hai wo declare kar do tum… (Then he said that yeah, that’s an issue. So I said look, you declare who is the official negotiator)
Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Saara qissa bahar ho jayegaa. (The whole story would be out)
Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Toh… (So) Aur ensure that people know that Maran is not the official negotiator.
Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Lekin (But) then I found out that this bloody English-speaking party only talks through English-speaking people
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Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Aur wo… (And that) Anyway, wo Daya kaa aur Rahul ko kuch business interest hai toh (If Daya and Rahul have a business interest then) that always is an issue… going to be an issue.
Niira Radia: What is the interest matlab?
Shankkar Aiyar: Maloom nahi. Kuch software software… kuch to. Sab business interest hai kuch… dono ka. Jab ye mantri thaa naa tabhi ek baar ghalti se iske munh se kuch nikal gaya. (Don’t know. Some software thing. Something. There’s some business interest, both have. When he was a Minister, then only he happened to say leak out something by mistake)
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Niira Radia: But I thought Rahul is the one who said he doesn’t want (inaudible)
Shankkar Aiyar: Who? Dayanidhi? He doesn’t want Dayanidhi there?
Niira Radia: Yeah!
Shankkar Aiyar: Then… toh toot gaya hoga phir. Pata nahi. Mere ko ye… matlab… (Then the alliance might have fallen apart. Don’t know. I mean…) I am talking of 2006.
Niira Radia: Nahi nahi… (No No) I think it’s it’s changed from that point. I think there’s something quite…
Shankkar Aiyar: (Inaudible)
Niira Radia: Nahi nahi I know that because… you know… they have… and the problem is… I agree with you, they have not declared who they officially negotiate with…
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Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: That’s (inaudible) Karunanidhi needs to do…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: He can’t send five of them to negotiate naa… which is what
Shankkar Aiyar: Tsk.. No no… he should just simply… I mean this is the best time to make Azhagiri or Kani the official DMK face in Delhi
Niira Radia: Right
Shankkar Aiyar: Bhai ye dono me se ek ko bolo tum negotiate karo bhai. (Tell one of them to negotiate)
Niira Radia: Right… Azhagiri (inaudible)
Shankkar Aiyar: Who better than… Haan… (Yes)
Niira Radia: Hmm… That’s that’s the mistake. He needs to declare his official negotiator. (Pause) No… Anyway, that’s the problem. So, nobody has told him anything. So, he doesn’t know what’s going on. He is missed. He doesn’t understand. Nobody even told him that the Congress doesn’t want to…uhh.. give infrastructure portfolios to Balu or Maran.
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Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: Which is why they suggested labour, chemical fertilizer and telecom so that Raja can continue…
Shanakar: Hmm hmm
Niira Radia: This is not related to him. They’ve only told him there are three portfolios. So whatever he's seeing, is also seeing on television…
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: And on his own Sun Network, he is carrying whatever he wants to be projected to his (inaudible).
Shankkar Aiyar: Hmm
Niira Radia: It’s as silly as that. Can you imagine? Tum batao na wo apne Congress walon ko. (You tell your Congress people na)
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Shankkar Aiyar: Kya bataoon (What do I tell them?)
Niira Radia: Haan? Kaun hai… FM kaun hai? (What? Who is that? Who is the FM?)
Shankkar Aiyar: Haan?
Niira Radia: FM kaun hai? (Who is the FM?)
Shankkar Aiyar: Pranab… Pranab
Niira Radia: Pranab. And this one… uh… Commerce?
Shankkar Aiyar: Maine Kamal ko maine kal phone kiyaa… (I called up Kamal yesterday)
Niira Radia: Hmm
Shankkar Aiyar: Wo keh raha kuch bhi decide nahi hua… bekaar me log kyon…matlab… Maine bola tu ja raha hai kya South Block, Raisinhaa (inaudible) ja raha hai kya tu… Toh nahi… bola nahi abhi to kuch decide nahi hua… baarah baje aaj ho.. tsk.. you are the first person who gave me that clarity ke aaj baarah baje final hoga list.
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Niira Radia: Hmm. So then I… Wo meeting abhi chal raha hai na (Isn’t that meeting going on?)
Shankkar Aiyar: Shuru hua abhi… (It started right now)
Niira Radia: Haan (Ok)
Shankkar Aiyar: das baje shuru hua… (Started at 10)
Niira Radia: Haan (Ok)
Shankkar Aiyar: Das- sawa das baje shuru huaa hoga (Might have started around 10-10:15)
Niira Radia: Achcha (I see)
Shankkar Aiyar: and go on till 1
Niira Radia: Oh
Shankkar Aiyar: Minister… none of… even the sure shot hundred per cent ministers have not been told
Niira Radia: Hmm hmm. They will… they will get told after one o’clock… yeah.
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Shankkar Aiyar: So… Hmm
Niira Radia: Chalo bata dena what you hear. (Ok, let me know what you hear)
Transcribed by Saira and checked by OL
