Bengaluru, Jan 1: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Sunday ruled out the merger of Karnataka's popular dairy brand Nandini with Amul after a row broke out over Union Home Minister Amit Shah's comments on the state's milk cooperative.

He was replying to a query on Congress state president D K Shivakumar's apprehension that Nandini could be merged with Gujarat's Amul based on Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah's visit to Nandini's facility in Mandya.

Bommai said Nandini will always maintain its separate identity in "the coming hundreds of years". "The merger of Nandini with Amul is a wrong imagination. What to say about those who comment on based on their whims and fancies?" the Chief Minister told reporters here.

Shah had clearly said that Nandini and Amul to cooperate in the area of technology and marketing, Bommai added.

"Shah had said these two big companies should complement each other but that does not mean there should be a merger. The Nandini brand will remain as a separate entity permanently for hundreds of years," Bommai said.

The Chief Minister said Shah had stated there will be benefits if both of brands worked together in some sector.

Nandini or Amul can exchange their best practices and expertise in specific areas such as technology or administration, Bommai said.

"The Union Minister's statement must not be misunderstood and politicised. As a Chief Minister, I am saying that the Nandini brand will be a separate identity forever," he told reporters.

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Chennai: Actor-politician Vijay has reportedly not been invited to take oath as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after failing to demonstrate support from the required number of MLAs, sources in Raj Bhavan said.

According to media reports that quoted sources in the office of R.N. Ravi Arlekar, Vijay could not prove the backing of 118 legislators, the majority mark in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly.

Despite last-minute efforts to secure support from the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazagam (AMMK), and an IUML legislator, Vijay reportedly managed support from only 116 MLAs, falling short by two members.

Sources said Vijay failed to submit letters of support from the VCK and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).

Later, the IUML issued a statement clarifying that it was not part of the TVK-led alliance.

Meanwhile, AMMK leader T.T.V. Dhinakaran is also said to have informed the Governor that his party would support the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) instead.

Earlier in the evening, Vijay had met Governor Arlekar and staked claim to form the government, stating that he enjoyed the support of 118 MLAs.