Mumbai: The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has registered a remarkable victory in the Lok Sabha election after it won 37 of 38 (the state has 39 seats but no elections were held in Vellore) constituencies but it has won only 13 assembly seats out of 22 in the state Assembly by-election.
Though the DMK has covered much ground, it will not be possible for the party to form government in Tamil Nadu as its rival All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has won nine seats in the state by-election taking its member-tally to 123 in the state Assembly which needs 118 members to claim the majority.
In the election, the AIADMK had teamed with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The AIADMK has won just one Lok Sabha seat in this election.
The verdict is in contrast to the national mood as the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance has registered an emphatic victory in the Lok Sabha elections winning more than 350 seats.
The issues which are believed to have affected the performance of AIADMK (NDA) include demonetisation, GST and some schemes of the Centre which have failed to resonate with the people of Tamil Nadu.
The DMK’s allies CPI (M) and CPI have also won two seats each.
Political analysts do not rule out the possibility that some AIADMK members may switch sides and join the DMK seeing the latter’s spectacular performance. That, however, may not happen as the DMK’s partner Congress won just 52 seats in the Lok Sabha election and has nothing to offer at the Centre.
M K Stalin, son of former chief minister of Tamil Nadu Late M Karunanidhi, led the party to the stellar performance. It was his first election after his father’s death.
Stalin had supported Congress president Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha election and endorsed him for the Prime Minister’s post.
Stalin took to Twitter after the results were announced:
With folded hands, we accept the resounding victory given to the DMK alliance by the people of Tamil Nadu. During the next five years, we will work hard to fulfill the promises made and protect the interest of our state!
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) May 23, 2019
Stalin also congratulated PM Modi for his victory:
I congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his victory. We hope and wish he will provide a progressive government based on the principles of democracy and inclusivity.
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) May 23, 2019
NDTV reported that Stalin vociferously campaigned across the state to garner people’s confidence and interacted directly with the people.
Though the DMK may not be able to form the government in the state, it has shown its prowess which the ruling AIADMK must have a note of. The state shall go for polls in 2021.
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