After a gap of three years, the Congress and the DMK today entered into a pre poll alliance for the upcoming Tamil Nadu assembly elections.
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Azad was accompanied by state Congress president D S U J Elangovan and the party’s Tamil Nadu in-cost Mukul Wasnik. “People of Tamil Nadu have been frustrated with the politics they have witnessed over half a century and they want change and fresh start”, he added.
Describing DMK as “the most dependable partner”, Azad said seat sharing and being part of the DMK led government were not a priority now and that the main goal was to ensure that DMK comes to power.
In the 2014 Parliamentary polls, the Congress had faced the voters alone and was routed in all 39 seats, though its candidate in Kanyakumari came second pushing the AIADMK and DMK candidates to the third and fourth places respectively.
Meanwhile, DMK leaders are engaged in negotiations with Captain Vijayakanth of the DMDK to strengthen the anti-AIADMK coalition.
Asked if the “other allies” referred to actor-politician Vijayakant’s DMDK, actively being wooed by both DMK and BJP, the Congress leader said that decision was for DMK to take. “While the Congress, after its electoral losses and party-split here, desperately needs a share in power to retain its cadre and supporters in this state, the DMK too remains”.
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Earlier, reports were doing the rounds that the two parties were looking to revive their alliance and DMK chief Karunanidhi has invited Congress senior leaders at his residence to “materialise the ties”. “In southern belts, the Congress remains a powerful presence and their second-level leadership draws sizeable votes from various communities, including Nadar, which claims the legacy of K Kamaraj”, said a source. Prodded about the Congress-DMK tie-up, Union environment minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters on Sunday that the NDA would declare its alliance in a week’s time.
