Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram and Tamil Nadu Congress President K Selvaperunthagai are scheduled to meet Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday to discuss the seat-sharing arrangement between the DMK and Congress ahead of the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
The meeting comes amid ongoing negotiations within the DMK-led alliance over the allocation of constituencies for the upcoming polls.
Addressing speculation about differences between the alliance partners, Selvaperunthagai said negotiations over seat distribution were part of the electoral process and expressed confidence that an agreement would be reached.
“Negotiations take place in every election, and each party will demand more seats, and a settlement will eventually be reached. The same will happen here. We’re asking for a few more seats, and a settlement will be reached,” he said.
He stressed that the alliance between the two parties remains strong.
“The DMK and Congress, the INDIA Bloc alliance, is a natural alliance, an ideological alliance. Where’s the disagreement? In every election, all parties, even smaller ones, demand more seats. We’ll ask for whatever we need. Our Chief Minister, Stalin, will certainly consider it. There’s no problem; everything is running smoothly,” he added.
Selvaperunthagai also dismissed speculation that the Congress had held discussions with actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, stating that the party had not engaged in any talks with the outfit.
Meanwhile, AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami returned to Chennai after meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah on March 2 to discuss the political situation in Tamil Nadu and preparations for the Assembly elections.
Speaking to reporters, Palaniswami said the meeting focused on strengthening the National Democratic Alliance in the state ahead of the polls. He added that AIADMK was in discussions with several parties regarding possible alliances and that some could join the NDA bloc.
He also clarified that there had been no discussions about including VK Sasikala’s party in the alliance.
The 234-member Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is expected to go to the polls in the first half of 2026. The ruling DMK-led alliance is likely to campaign on the ‘Dravidian Model 2.0’ agenda against the BJP–AIADMK alliance.
Leave a Reply