DMK MP and karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi's role in the 2G scam remains a matter of speculation but her half-brother and union chemicals and fertilisers minister M K Alagiri blames her for earning the Karuna clan brickbats due to her 'closeness' to 2G pawn A Raja.

Alagiri, reportedly voiced his displeasure in front of the DMK patriarch and other family members. Karunanidhi, however, is more concerned in keeping Kanimozhi out of the mess, sources say.

Senior DMK functionaries say that a former ministers T R Baalu and A Raja kept Karunanidhi in the dark over the Niira Radia dealing. Two of them, who are also in the union cabinet, believe that youngsters of the Karuna clan are now begin to flex there muscles within the party and are sidelining the seniors, in indrect references to Kanimozhi and Dayanidhi Maran.

While rifts in the clan have still not been acknowledged, the party has not issued a statement on the 2G graft so far as there could be one of Karuna's children involved. Alagiri, party sources maintain, will probably be dooning a coorinator's role to smoothen things out between the centre and DMK leadership. Sources say Alagiri is best suited for the job as Dayanidhi Maran's and Baalu's failure to covey the import of the scam's ramifications eroded away much of the confidence Karunanidhi had on the two leaders.