TN: Chodankar’s Words Trigger Speculations
Chodankar telling a news agency in Delhi that the 25 seats offered by the DMK when it resumed seat-sharing talks with the Congress after a long break was unacceptable and his praising of the Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) as a party gaining traction among the youth gave raise to rumours of the alliance breaking
Chennai: The inordinate delay in finalizing the seat-sharing for the coming Assembly elections by both the major coalitions, one led by the DMK and the other by the AIADMK-BJP combine, has triggered speculations of possible realignments ahead of the polls with many fearing the breaking of the decade long ties between the DMK and the Congress, going by the latest averments of AICC leader Girish Chodankar.
Chodankar telling a news agency in Delhi that the 25 seats offered by the DMK when it resumed seat-sharing talks with the Congress after a long break was unacceptable and his praising of the Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) as a party gaining traction among the youth gave raise to rumours of the alliance breaking.
Reacting to Chodankar’s remarks made in Delhi, DMK sources said that that was no possibility of the party revising its offer and absolutely not possible for the DMK to meet the TVK’s demand for at least 34 seats. Seat sharing talks between the two parties ran into rough weather when the TVK insisted on power sharing and an increase in the number of seats allotted to it.
Though the ruffled feathers were smoothened and the DMK relented to start the talks after the Congress agreed to drop the power sharing demand, the latest posturing has become the next threat. That the Congress top brass was also apparently not happy with the progress of the negotiations was evident from the social media message posted by Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
People pointed to the usual bonhomie missing between the two leaders since the birthday greeting to Stalin was posted after 1.30 pm on Sunday without the normal salutations like dear brother and so on. It was more of a smug, formal matter of fact message, indicating that the future of the alliance remained in the hands of leaders of the committees like Chodankar and T R Baalu.
Problems have also risen in the cementing of the alliance in the rival camp, too, as AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami left for New Delhi for a meeting with top NDA honchos, the day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the State.
Disputes have risen over seat sharing. Apart from the numbers, the bone of contention is the seats themselves. The BJP that could be contesting from 30 or so seats is very particular about fielding candidates in seats with ‘religious significance,’ meaning they want constituencies that have major temples located in them.
So other partners that might have nurtured those constituencies are unwilling to part with them, throwing the spanner into the wheels of the negotiations. Palaniswami would have to sort that out through discussions with BJP leaders in Delhi.
Another churning that could happen is if the Congress decides to snap ties with the DMK. If the party aligns with the TVK – preliminary talks have already been completed – as per the wishes of the high command, it could lead to disillusionment at the grassroots level, which might even create a rift in the Tamil Nadu unit of the Congress.
