Tamil Nadu election is expected to witness a multi-cornered contest with more fronts emerging everyday.
Along with main contenders, AIADMK-led ruling coalition and DMK-led Opposition front, the Makkal Neethi Maiam (MNM)-led front, which include Sarath Kumar’s All India Samathuva Makkal Katchi (AISMK) and TR Pachamuthu’s Indhiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK), and AMMK-led front which include Owaisi’s AIMIM are jostling for the 234 Assembly seats in the southern state.
The ruling AIADMK’s ally DMDK on Tuesday walked out of the alliance following failure of seat-sharing talks for the 6 April Assembly elections with just days left for the nominations to open.
After three-rounds of protracted negotiations with the AIADMK that failed to fructify, the DMDK led by actor-turned politician Vijayakanth said it was moving out of the alliance, that also has the PMK and BJP as partners.
If Vijayakanth’s DMDK ally with smaller parties the contest will become five-cornered in Tamil Nadu. DMDK chief, however, has not revealed the party’s next course of action and it is not yet known if the party will join another alliance or face the polls alone.
MNM chief Kamal Haasan quickly invited the DMDK to the front led by him and welcomed other like-minded parties as well. The alliance led by him, “is not the third but the first front,” he said.
“In the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, DMDK held talks with AIADMK in three sittings. The AIADMK refused to allot the requested numbers of the seats. So as the negotiations did not reach its desired conclusion and since all of DMDK district secretaries reached a decision, DMDK has decided to quit AIADMK and DMDK alliance from 9 March.” Vijayakanth stated.
Meanwhile, Haasan’s MNM signed a pact with Sarath Kumar’s AISMK and TR Pachamuthu’s Indhiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK) to face the upcoming Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu together.
As per the agreement, AISMK and IJK will contest in 40 seats each, while the MNM will contest in 154 constituencies in Tamil Nadu.
According to a Press release issued by AMMK chief TTV Dhinakaran on Monday after inking pact with Owaisi, AIMIM will be contesting from three constituencies.
Though the AIMIM was keen on joining the DMK alliance, the other Muslim parties ~Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK)~ were not too comfortable with Owaisi’s party joining the DMK alliance. This resulted in the DMK snubbing AIMIM. Muslim dominated Vaniyambadi, Krishnagiri and Sankarapuram are the constituencies AIMIM is contesting.
Wooing women
Meanwhile on women’s Day, AIADMK announced that Rs 1,500 would be given to the women heads of the family (as per the ration card) in every household in Tamil Nadu, as part of its poll promises for the Assembly elections. In addition to this, the party has promised six cooking gas cylinders per year to every family in the state.
Chief minister Edappadi Palaniswami has further stated that other announcements will be part of the manifesto, which is likely to be released this week.
Palaniswami’s announcements come a day after DMK launched its ‘Vision Document’ for the next 10 years for Tamil Nadu in which Stalin announced that if voted to power, every household that procures food grains from ration shops in the state will be given Rs 1,000 each transferred to the bank account of the woman in the household.
Meanwhile, MNM chief Kamal Haasan accused the DMK of copying his party’s promises regarding honourarium for women. MNM had, months ago, proposed an honourarium for homemakers if the party if voted to power in the upcoming elections in Tamil Nadu.