Cong strong enough to contest alone if needed: Selvaperunthagai

CHENNAI: Newly appointed Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president KS Alagiri sprung a surprise on Thursday and proclaimed that the Congress party, which has a 138-year-old history, was capable of going it alone in the polls if seat sharing talks do not materialize.

Reacting to a specific media query on whether the Congress was 'pleading' for seats with the DMK, Selvaperunthagai said, "Where did we plead? Who did we plead with? Tell us. We are holding seat sharing talks (with DMK) as allies. If it does not happen (work out), we will contest alone like we did in 2014. How many elections would the Congress party have faced in its 138-year-old history. Our party does not treat anyone like a big brother. Our national president Mallikarjuna Kharge will be here in a couple of weeks."

Unsurprisingly, the opposition AIADMK did not waste any time in capitalizing on the TNCC chief's daring one liner at the Sathyamurthy Bhavan press conference. Former AIADMK minister Vaigaichelvan, when asked about the DMK-Cong seat sharing talks, said, "The bitterness in the DMK-Congress ties has manifested. If the Congress believes that the AIADMK has the cure for the bitterness, a good reply (read as decision) would be received soon."

Adding that the talks with the DMK were very cordial, Selvaperunthagai said, "I don't know why the media is in such a tearing hurry. We inked the seat sharing pact in the last week of March in 2019. Even February has not ended now. We are in good relationship with the DMK. Talks are very cordial. It will end amicably."

Asked if the Congress would consider going it alone if the DMK does not allot the nine seats it currently holds, the TNCC chief said, "The high command will decide it. There is no need for such speculation even."

If sources in both parties are to be believed, the DMK seems to be firm in its eight seat offer, including Puducherry, but the Congress party was pressing for at least nine seats, excluding the Theni seat it had lost in 2019. A few constituencies also seem to be the hurdle in finalizing the poll pact as the Congress party was negotiating seats with candidates already in mind.

For instance, former TNCC chief Thirunavukkarasar's sitting Tiruchy seat is sought by the DMK, which is unable to allot Ramanathapuram (allotted to IUML) as an alternative.