Chennai: DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) president M Karunanidhi today (Nov 22, 2004) said he suspected "personal vengeance and motives"' behind the way in which the Kanchi Seer was treated after his arrest.

"It is too much. My opinion is the same that of the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on the issue," he told reporters.

Spotlight: Kanchi Jayendra Saraswathi's Arrest

"We have welcomed the arrest of Shankaracharya but now we come to know that there are certain things behind the arrest. There is personal vengeance on the part of Chief Minister Jayalalithaa," he said.

He said the Shankaracharya was arrested only after two and half months after the temple official Sankararaman was murdered. "What happened in between? Why is the delay? They say it was due to investigation. But on hearing certain facts, doubts have been created," he said.

Asked whether there was a political motive behind the arrest, he said, "There are a lot of personal issues between Jayalalithaa and Shankaracharya. This should not be forgotten."