Paris: So does France have a first lady or not? The short answer is, who knows?

Rumours swirled after one newspaper claimed that French President Nicolas Sarkozy may have already married his sweetheart, model-singer Carla Bruni, in a small secret ceremony at the Elysee Palace. Others say they might honeymoon at a resort near Verona - which, as the hometown of doomed lovers Romeo and Juliet, would seem like inauspicious symbolism for newlyweds.

Sarkozy, who will be visiting India later this month, has refused to say either way, but he seems to be amusing himself by keeping people guessing.

In a chat this week with reporters during a trip to Qatar, he commanded: "Stop being so fascinated by my private life."
He complained that reporters were so hungry for details of his private life that their "tongues (were) hanging out." And he concluded: "If I have something to tell you, I will."

Henri Guaino, a Sarkozy adviser, griped to France-2 television that the curiosity was "unhealthy and obsessive." But he advised people who want to know whether Sarkozy is married "to watch his hands" for a ring.

For now, the presidential ring finger is bare. Sarkozy has refused all comment on a report in L Est Republicain newspaper this week that said he may have already married Bruni at a small, intimate ceremony at the Elysee Palace on January 10. Other reports since then have suggested that the newspaper may have jumped the gun, and that they are still not wed.

Source : PTI