With just a day remaining for the no-holds barred campaign to end for the May eight Assembly polls, the announcement by the AIADMK offering half a sovereign gold resulted in a war of words between the two Dravidian parties.

The DMK claimed that only after it highlighted that the AIADMK Government withdrew the marriage assistance scheme launched by its regime, had Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa made the golden offer.

It was nothing but a modification of the DMK''s mention in the poll manifesto that the financial aid for marriage would be increased from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 if the party was voted to power, the DMK said.

Earlier, countering the DMK''s offer of Rs two a kg rice under the PDS, Ms Jayalalithaa questioned its feasibility before announcing that ten kg of rice would be given to BPL families free.

After this, the DMK''s free Colour TV offer dominated the scene and prompted the AIADMK to say it would provide cable connections at subsidised rates.

Even as the debate on these sops continued, with some parties saying they were violations of the model code of conduct, Miss Jayalalithaa said the AIADMK, if voted to power would give four gm gold to make ''thaali'' (mangalsutra) for every girl during her marriage. She added later that the offer was applicable to girls from all religions, after the DMK raised the question.

She said the half sovereign gold would be given to daughters of farmers covered by the Farmers Protection scheme and BPL families at the time of their marriage, irrespective of caste and religion.

The offer was not restricted to one girl in a family but any number.

''Girls from different religions can use the gold according to their religious customs and practices. Christians can use it for making wedding rings, if they so want, and Muslims as per their religious needs'', she said.

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