Chennai: DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) president M Karunanidhi today (Feb 05, 2004) came down heavily on AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) supremo Jayalalithaa's reported statement that she would rake up the issue of Congress president Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin while campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls.

Jayalalithaa was reported to have told her partymen during the general council meeting at Kolapakkam village, 45 km from Chennai that only a person, born in the country, should become the Prime Minister.

In a statement, Karunanidhi asked whether Jayalalithaa was unaware of Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin in 1999, when she joined hands with Congress to dislodge the Vajpayee Ministry.

While the Vajpayee Government at the Centre was indulging in a massive advertisement campaign, claiming "unimplementable" schemes as its achievement. "The person (Jayalalithaa) who had told the State Assembly in November last that the people in the Cauvery delta will chase the Prime Minister away if he came to the area seeking votes, has now joined hands with him," he said.