Chennai, Mar 19 (UNI) With the ruling DMK-led front having ticked all the boxes right and
finalised the seat sharing agreement and the constituencies with its allies by keeping its
flocks together, the suspense in the Opposition camp of AIADMK and its former ally the
BJP, both trying to form a formidable alliance, and trying to woo their former partners PMK
and the DMDK, continues.
Both the AIADMK, which had recently severed its ties with the saffron party and was confident
of forming a strong alliance, and the BJP, despite nursing hopes of reviving its ties with the Dravidian
party, also trying to form a cohesive front, are trying to woo the PMK and the DMDKK into their fold
for the April 19 Lok Sabha polls.
But there is a twist in the tale.
At a time, when AIADMK, according to reports, seemed to have finalised, nay confirmed its alliance with the PMK by offering seven LS seats and a Rajya Sabha seat and the pact in all likelihood to be signed on Wednesday after a PMK emissary met AIADMK leaders who also reciprocated it, a sudden
development arose.
Reports said that late last night, the BJP in a bid to woo the PMK into its fold is ready to
offer 10 Lok Sabha seats and a Rajya Sabha seat, putting the Vanniyar dominated outfit
in a horns of dilemma.
Which way the PMK will go, whether with the BJP or the AIADMK. This is the question that has
been lingering in the minds of political observers as the stage is set for filing of nominations for
next month's polling, from tomorrow.
This also has put the DMK in a quizotic position. It was already on top gear and finalised seat sharing
pacts and identified the constituencies with its allies. However, it is waiting for the allocation of seats
to the PMK--either by the AIADMK or the BJP--to field a strong candidate in the seats to be contested
by it, as the ruling Front is eyeing for an encore of 2019 when it won 39 of the total 40 seats, including
the lone seat in the Union Territory of Puducherry.
This time, the DMK-led alliance, which is a key partner of the nation-wide Opposition INDIA bloc and
was determined to win all the 40 seats in TN to have a say at the National level and play a key role in
forming the next government, was hellbent on unseating the 'fascist' BJP from power at the Centre in the interest of Tamil Nadu and country's development.
DMK President and Chief Minister M.K.Stalin has been harping on the single point of not who should
come to power, but who should not come to power--the BJP--which it said was a threat to country's
federal principles and democracy.
In this scenario, the time is running out not only for the AIADMK, which had been reiterating that it will never renew its ties with the BJP, but also for the PMK.
Both the parties are in constant touch with the PMK headed by Dr.S.Ramadoss and the DMDK of late actor-politician Vijayakanth.
While the PMK said it was no more in alliance with the AIADMK after the 2021 Assembly poll
debacle, the Dravidian party recently severed its ties with the saffron party and also walked
out of the NDA, though both are vying with each other to rope in their former partners PMK and
the DMDK.
After several rounds of talks, reports emerged that the AIADMK is all set to sign the seat sharing
agreement with the PMK tomorrow by offering the same number of seats (7 LS and a RS seat)
as it did in 2019.
When the PMK too is inclined to accept this offer, there came a sudden development late last
night when the BJP, according to reports, said it was ready to offer more number of seats to
the PMK (10 LS plus a RS seat), though it was not officially confirmed by both the parties.
Both the AIADMK and the BJP are involved in hectic parleys to woo them, including DMDK,
into their fold and a final picture will emerge in the next two days which might clear the air on which
way especially, the PMK, and the DMDK will go.
The BJP is also ready to part with more seats for the DMDK, if reports are to be believed but
the hitch remained in a Rajya Saba seat which the latter is keen on.
The DMK, having won the last five successive polls, is already way ahead in its poll process and the AIADMK and the BJP are still in the negotiating stage, with fringe parties offering their support to them.
But the BJP can hold its head high as the ousted AIADMK leader and former CM O.Panneerselvam,
who was permanently barred by the Madras High Court from using AIADMK's party name and symbol, and AMMK led by TTV Dhinakaran, nephew of late leader J.Jayalalithaa's close aide V.K.Sasikala (both ousted form AIADMK), have offered their support to the BJP and are ready to ally with it, though the seat sharing pact was yet to be arrived at.
Adding to this, was Tamil Maanila Congress led by former Union Minister G.K.Vasan who too had almost cemented its ties with the BJP and vowed to work for BJP victory in the polls, and all of them are expected to be on stage when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a massive poll rally in the Kongu region of Salem, where the BJP has a significant presence and wanted to further strengthen it ahead of the polls.
A clear picture on the Opposition's alliance strategy is expected to be cleared in the next one or
two days as only a week left for the last date for filing of nominations and the campaigning is set
to begin in the high stakes, no-holds barred elections, that in all likelihood will witness a four cornered
contest, with the Naam Tamizhar Katchi of actor-director Seeman also in the fray.
UNI GV 0745