Congress Engaged In Hard Bargaining With DMK Over Seat-Sharing For Coming TN Polls
Congress insiders said the high command was seized of the matter, and the deployment of Chidambaram indicated its seriousness in sealing the alliance.
Published : March 3, 2026 at 4:56 PM IST
New Delhi: The Congress is engaged in hard bargaining with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and has refused to budge from its two key demands of more than 25 seats and power sharing ahead of the Tamil Nadu assembly elections.
All 234 Tamil Nadu assembly seats will go to polls in April, and an announcement is expected by the Election Commission in the first week. The DMK-led ruling alliance hopes to defeat the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). The Congress has been supporting the DMK-led alliance for two decades, but is asserting itself this time in the hope of a better deal.
The Congress assertion has led to tensions with the regional major DMK, as both partners are involved in tough negotiations. The DMK has rejected the Congress's demand for power sharing but offered 25 seats and 2 Rajya Sabha (RS) seats to keep the grand old party in the alliance.
According to sources, the DMK had asked the Congress to clarify its position on the Rajya Sabha seats as the regional party wanted to finalize its candidates on the four RS berths ahead of the March 5 deadline for filing nominations.
On its part, the Congress wants to keep the alliance but has said no to the DMK offer, saying it wanted clarity on the number of assembly seats and power sharing first. Congress insiders said they have asked for 39 assembly seats, which goes down to one seat per 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu, as well as a share in the cabinet berths and in various boards and corporations.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) in charge of Tamil Nadu, Girish Chodankar, who heads the Congress panel for seat-sharing, had met the DMK panel on Feb 28. The Congress was concerned over the delay in the seat-sharing talks, but attended the consultations when called and listed its demands formally before the ally.
“We have placed our demands with the DMK. Negotiations are on. The offer of 25 seats is not acceptable to us. As for the Rajya Sabha seats, the matter can be discussed only after clarity emerges on the number of assembly seats. We are hopeful of a positive outcome,” AICC in charge of Tamil Nadu Girish Chodankar told ETV Bharat.
As tensions mounted between the DMK and Congress, the issue of seat-sharing was discussed by the top leadership, including former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on March 1.
On March 3, former union minister P Chidambaram conveyed the high command’s message to Chief Minister MK Stalin. Tamil Nadu Congress chief Selvaperunthagai, who is a member of the alliance panel, accompanied Chidambaram. Sending Chidambaram indicated the seriousness with which the high command was involved in the matter, said insiders.
Since Dec 3, 2025, when the Congress panel had first met the chief minister over its two key demands, the issue had led to heated exchanges between the state leaders of the two parties.
The issue had reached Rahul Gandhi, who reviewed the ground situation and took it upon himself to decide the alliance matters. Rahul subsequently deployed AICC in charge of organization KC Venugopal to meet CM Stalin in Chennai on Feb 22. On Feb 23, Chodankar met DMK mp Kanimozhi. Yet, the two sides have not been able to close the seat-sharing formula.
Out of the 25 seats, the Congress had won 19 seats in the 2021 elections, but party insiders said the tough stance of the grand old party reflected the popular sentiment among the workers in Tamil Nadu.
AICC functionary Chella Kumar noted the Congress had made sacrifices in the past for the sake of the alliance, and it was now payback time for the DMK. He also noted that a secular alliance was a necessity in the southern state, and such a pact would not succeed without the Congress.
“The Congress contested 110 seats in 1980. Since then, it has always made compromises. As a result, the party reduced its presence across the state, but the workers now yearn for a better deal. That is the reason we are asking for more seats and a share in the power at various levels. Both are genuine demands for any political party,” Chella Kumar told ETV Bharat.
The AICC functionary refused to comment on the ongoing seat-sharing talks but expressed the hope that the issue of alliance will be closed soon.
“Negotiations are on. The high command will decide. Hence, I would not like to comment on the subject. However, I hope the talks will conclude soon. Only then will the final picture emerge,” he said.
