Chennai, March 30 :    Chennai, March 30:  Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi tonight virtually snapped ties with his NDA ally Vaiko. At a hurriedly called news conference at the DMK headquarters here, he accused Vaiko of instigating the MDMK cadre to come out in the open against him and spreading canards. 'This is simply not on in an alliance,' he said. 'The hitch after all is over three seats and that could be sorted out. But even if we patch up now, I wonder how the cadre of the two parties would work together after so much recrimination in public,' Karunanidhi said. When pressed whether he was severing ties with the MDMK, he said: 'I leave it to your inference.' The DMK had agreed to leave 21 seats to the MDMK but problems cropped up when it came to seat identification. MDMK's demand was met in 21 seats but problems remained with three others. Earlier in the day, Karunanidhi had issued a thinly veiled warning that the MDMK might find itself out in the cold if it was adamant in its demand. But Vaiko refused to take the hint and get back to him with a compromise and Karunanidhi chose to precipitate the issue. 'The DMK will not stand in the way and be an obstacle if the MDMK chooses to go it alone. Even if the issue is settled, I have my doubts whether the initial goodwill displayed by the MDMK will be exhibited during the electoral battle,' he had said. 'In the name of maintaining democratic traditions, we cannot forgo everything to uphold democracy in the front led by the DMK. We have also to think about ourselves,' he added. After rebuilding his bridges to his mentor, Vaiko suddenly finds himself in a no man's land. ADMK chief Jayalalitha will not be willing to welcome him back to her front and Vaiko is in no position to go it alone. Karunanidhi is determined to drive home the point that he has no option but to come back to him. Vaiko is now looking upon the BJP to bail him out of the predicament. He had always sought to present himself as the Tamil Nadu ally closest to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpyee. When the DMK refused to part with more than 21 seats to the MDMK, Vaiko was insisting on being treated at par with the BJP, which had been given 23 seats. The BJP had come forward to cede two of the seats allotted to it to the MDMK. It is also rumoured that the two parties have agreed to switch camps after the elections if Jayalalitha emerges triumphant. In the circumstances, the BJP would come to Vaiko's rescue, MDMK circles believe.