Congress likely to get 10 seats, other parties vie for more

Senior TNCC leaders, including its chief KS Alagiri, his predecessor EVKS Elangovan and Chidambaram were learnt to have apprised Congress president Rahul Gandhi who also hosted DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi, the chief negotiator of the Dravidian major. The leaders were understood to have discussed choice of constituencies.

“There was no difference of opinion on seats,”a DMK senior requesting anonymity said, revealing that the national party has settled for 10 seats, including Puducherry. TNCC president KS Alagiri, after consulting his national boss Rahul Gandhi, told reporters in New Delhi that the details of the seat sharing talks would be made public on Wednesday.

Sources in the Congress admitted that the state leaders had apprised Rahul of the choice of constituencies. Prominent state Congress leaders, especially Chidambaram and former TNCC presidents Elangovan and Krishnasamy were learnt to have proposed their choice of seats to their leadership.

If sources in both parties were to be believed, the DMK would have some tough negotiations to do with the CPI, MDMK, CPM and VCK, who were learnt to have increased their demand after the PMK inked poll pact with the AIADMK. While the CPI wants DMK to match the offer made to CPM, which would most likely get two LS seats, both Vaiko and Thirumavalavan could demand a seat each in addition to the one promised to them earlier. The PMK move has also put pressure on the DMK to consider the demand of the CPI, MDMK and VCK. Unlike IUML which was content with the lone seat allotted by the DMK, now MMK of Professor MH Jawahirullah, another minority party in the fold, could persuade the alliance leader to allot at least one more seat to the party.