AIADMK and DMK playing to their strengths

AIADMK and DMK playing to their strengths

The DMK and AIADMK have announced their candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and bypolls to 18 vacant Assembly seats.

The DMK and AIADMK have announced their candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and bypolls to 18 vacant Assembly seats. And the stage is set for a close contest, with the arch-rivals evenly matched, at least on paper. Both Dravidian majors, in selection of candidates as well as allotment of constituencies to their allies, have adopted a cautious approach given the stakes involved.

And as everyone knows, both parties are facing their first general election since the deaths of AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa and DMK chief M Karunanidhi. For the DMK, the elections will be a test of the leadership of M K Stalin, who succeeded his father Karunanidhi as party president. Meanwhile, for the ruling AIADMK, the results will determine the future of its government in Tamil Nadu.

The AIADMK has chosen to play to its strengths, focusing on the western region of the state, from where Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami hails, and giving away seven out of 10 LS seats in southern Tamil Nadu to its allies. While the south has long been considered an AIADMK stronghold, the party has perhaps factored in T T V Dhinakaran and therefore switched its attentions elsewhere. Dhinakaran’s AMMK could be an oddball, especially in the south, impacting both the DMK and AIADMK.

The DMK too has allotted its constituencies carefully, favouring the northern parts of the state where it will fight a relatively smaller rival, the PMK, which is part of the AIADMK’s alliance. In fact, both parties have been so cautious that they will be pitted directly against each other only in eight parliamentary seats. Similarly, they have placed their bets on political heirs in key constituencies, with the DMK’s list of 20 Lok Sabha candidates including seven nominees who are sons and daughters of party leaders. The AIADMK too has given tickets to Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam’s son among others. Interestingly, the ruling party has given tickets to only six out of 37 of its sitting MPs, perhaps to mitigate any anti-incumbency sentiment.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com