Congress, DMK Seal Alliance In Puducherry On Last Day Of Nominations

New Delhi: The Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), sealed their alliance for the Assembly elections in Puducherry on the last day of the nominations on Monday.

As per the new seat-sharing formula, out of the total 30 Assembly seats in the union territory, the Congress will contest 16, DMK 12, CPI one and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) one. The deal was struck between the two sides after days of hectic negotiations. Ideally the seat-sharing should have been finalized much earlier.

The delay occurred as the DMK refused to accept the 2021 seat-sharing formula under which the Congress had contested 21 seats and the Tamil Nadu-based party nine. The DMK wanted 14 seats each for the Congress and itself and two to be left for the allies to which the Congress did not agree saying it was the lead party in the UT and should get more seats. Finally, the DMK agreed for 12 seats. The Congress too gave up a few seats and settled for 16.

However, as clarity on the numbers came a bit late in the day, the allies ended up filing nomination papers together on most seats. Congress insiders said the good part was that the alliance was saved but acknowledged that the issue of which particular seats will be contested by which ally remained to be sorted out. Hence, the final picture will now emerge only after the last date of withdrawals of nomination on March 26, the insiders said, adding that they look forward to some more hard bargains over the next few days.

“A broad understanding has been reached. However, talks are still going on. Clarity will emerge soon,” AICC in charge of Puducherry Girish Chodankar told ETV Bharat.

In 2021, the Congress had won two seats and the DMK six in the UT. The NDA including NR Congress (10 seats) and BJP (6 seats) had formed the government headed by Chief Minister N Rangasamy. This time, the Congress has fielded former chief minister and sitting Lok Sabha MP V Vaithilingam from Thattanchavady against Rangasamy.

Former chief minister V Narayanasamy has not been given a ticket as there was no clarity on the Nellithope seat which was also being sought by the DMK. “The alliance has been finalized. Withdrawals from both sides will take place soon,” Narayanasamy told ETV Bharat.

“The Congress will do well in the UT polls. An independent MLA from Uzhavarkarai Sivasankaran joined the party on Sunday. The message is clear that people are choosing stability, credibility, and leadership that delivers,” said Chodankar.

According to Congress insiders, similar tough negotiations had taken place earlier in Tamil Nadu where the DMK finally gave 28 out of 234 Assembly seats to the grand old party. The Congress had contested 25 seats in 2021 and won 19. However, this year, the Congress had asked for 39 seats, one seat per 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and power sharing at various levels.

In 2021, the DMK had contested 188 seats, won 133 and formed an alliance government led by Chief Minister MK Stalin. The Congress supported the government but was not a part of it. The Congress and the DMK had sealed their alliance for 2026 Tamil Nadu polls on March 4, after weeks of tough negotiations. The deal took place only after the intervention of the top leadership from the two sides.

Although the DMK, the lead party in Tamil Nadu, rejected the power sharing demand, it agreed to accommodate Congress functionaries in the various boards and corporations, if the alliance was voted to power again.

According to Congress insiders, the two sides were yet to finalize which particular seats the grand old party would fight in Tamil Nadu. The insiders hoped the issue would be sorted out soon as both sides had sufficient time ahead of the polling on April 23.

“Our rock-solid alliance with the DMK will return to power and continue its stellar track record of good governance,” AICC in charge of Tamil Nadu Girish Chodankar told ETV Bharat. Chodankar said the BJP was trying to make its presence felt in both the state and the UT but along with its allies would not succeed.

“The BJP ideology simply doesn’t resonate with the people of Tamil Nadu. Their alliances hardly survive. The saffron party weakens its partners like termite damage wood slowly,” he said.

“The alliance will win in both the state and the UT. There is no anti-incumbency against the DMK led alliance in the state. In Puducherry, people are fed up with BJP and wont back the NDA this time,” AICC functionary Chella Kumar told ETV Bharat.

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