CHENNAI: Ending days of uncertainty and averting a potential rupture, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Puducherry on Friday finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the April 9 Assembly polls, with the ruling All India NR Congress (AINRC) retaining the lion's share while the BJP secured a marginal increase and the AIADMK saw a sharp reduction.
Under the agreement, the AINRC, led by Chief Minister N Rangasamy, will contest 16 seats, the same as in the previous election, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will field candidates in 10 seats, up from nine in 2021. The AIADMK has been allotted just two seats, down from five, and the Latchiya Jananayaga Katchi (LJK), a new entrant to the alliance, will also contest two seats.
The inclusion of the LJK, floated by Jose Charles Martin, son of lottery baron Santiago Martin, had triggered tensions within the alliance, with Rangasamy initially opposing its induction. The Chief Minister had even skipped a key NDA meeting convened by the BJP earlier this week, fuelling speculation of a split.
The alliance will continue, and we are confident of retaining power-- N Rangasamy, Puducherry CM
However, after consultations with the BJP leadership, Rangasamy relented. Union Minister Mansukh L Mandaviya flew into Puducherry for last-ditch talks, following which the deadlock was resolved. "The alliance will continue, and we are confident of retaining power," Chief Minister N Rangasamy told reporters in Puducherry on Friday, sharing details of the agreement.
Rangasamy, who had earlier announced a candidate for the Yanam constituency unilaterally, met Mandaviya later in the day, signalling a closure to the impasse. He also filed his nomination papers from the Thattanchavady and Mangalam constituencies.
The finalisation of the pact comes even as the DMK-Congress combine is yet to seal its own seat-sharing arrangement, with reports indicating parallel nomination filings by both parties.
In the 2021 elections, the AINRC emerged as the single largest party with 10 seats, while the BJP and Congress won six seats each and the DMK secured six. The NDA is now banking on cohesion within its ranks to retain control of the Union Territory.