DMK, Cong alliance for TN polls to continue: Karunanidhi

PTI

New Delhi, 01 February 2011: The DMK and the Congress on Monday decided to continue their seven-year-old alliance to contest the forthcoming Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu amid indications that the national party may do some hard bargaining for getting more seats for itself.

With just four months left for the elections in the state, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and decided to set up a committee to thrash out the modalities of seat-sharing.

"I met Sonia Gandhi for 45 minutes. As a result, the DMK-Congress coalition is continuing," he told reporters at the Tamil Nadu House here.

 
The meeting, which was scheduled to be held in the afternoon took place in the evening, and the decision to continue the alliance ended all speculation about any rift between the coalition partners in the wake of the 2G spectrum scam which forced A Raja to quit the Union Cabinet.

Karunanidhi said a committee will be formed to discuss the number of seats and the constituencies to be contested by both parties.

"A committee will be constituted. It will discuss the modalities for seat-sharing. The committee will decide the seats and constituencies of both parties," he said after the meeting, during which DMK Parliamentary Party leader T R Baalu, Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran and MP Kanimozhi were present.

The DMK chief said the committee members will be soon announced and it will start discussing the modalities.

The members of the committee will be made public soon, he said. After seat-sharing talks are over the coalition will be ready for the polls, which are due in May, he said.

Sources said the Congress, which had contested 48 of the 234 seats in the state, appears to be in a mood to demand about 100 and may settle down for about 75 seats.

The Congress’ demand for more seats is understood to be based on the perception that the DMK’s bargaining may have been weakened by the 2G spectrum scam. The Congress may also like a share in power if the alliance is voted back for another term, the sources said.

The DMK is also said to be prepared for some hard bargaining from the Congress. The sources said the alliance was never in doubt but Karunanidhi wanted a public message of reaffirmation by his visit and meeting Gandhi.

The Congress and the DMK had entered into an alliance in 2004 and contested the Lok Sabha elections that year, the 2006 Assembly elections and the 2009 general elections together.

The decision comes a day after Karunanidhi announced that PMK will be part of the alliance, but PMK founder S Ramadoss said his party has not yet taken any decision on the alliance question.

Asked about Ramadoss’s statement, Karunanidhi said discussions were on and both the parties have not taken a decision yet.

During the meeting with Gandhi, Karunanidhi is understood to have apprised her about the situation in the state.

A senior Congress leader from Tamil Nadu said the party expected at least 80 to 90 seats from the state, but admitted that during the negotiations it would come down to 65.

"We hope to get at least 65 seats. We also want the party to be part of the government if the alliance comes to power. But that decision has to be taken by our president," the leader said.