Baalu insults Ambika Soni over Sethu project, Ambika Soni walks out of Minister’s meeting

Translation from Daily Thanthi, Tamil daily of 15 Feb. 2008
http://www.dailythanthi.com/thanthiepaper/showxml.aspx?id=5484894&code=2869

Ambika Soni, Union Minister for Culture, walked out of the Group of Ministers’ Meeting held to discuss Setu project issue.

Ministers’ Meeting

A litigation is pending in the Supreme Court about Setu Channel project. Centre has prepared an affidavit to be submitted to the Court.

Yesterday, a Group of Ministers’ meeting was held to discuss this affidavit. In this meeting, senior ministers, Pranab Mukherjee, Arjun Singh, Bharadwaj, Kapil Sibal participated. Shipping Minister TR Baalu and Culture Minister Ambika Soni also participated.

Fight

In the meeting, Ambika Soni objected to some points made in the affidavit proposed for submission to the Court.

It is reported that then TR Baalu said that Ambika Soni is a hindrance to the Setu project and it is learnt that an exchange of words took place between TR Baalu and Ambika Soni.

Then, Kapil Sibal is reported to have said that Ambika Soni does not know anything about the Setu project.

Following this, there were altercations among the Ministers. Then, no one spoke in support of Ambika Soni.

Walk out

This angered her even more. Immediately, she walked out of the meeting in anger. She straightaway returned home.

Senior minister Pranab Mukherjee was shocked by this. To pacify Ambika Soni, he spoke to her on phone.

But, Ambika Soni was not pacified. She said that she was humiliated in the ministers’ meet.

Letter to PM

In this situation, Ambika Soni has written a letter to Prime Minister about the incidents which occurred in the Group of Ministers’ Meeting.

Responses