CHENNAI : First off the blocks for the the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the ruling DMK, a key constituent of the opposition INDIA bloc, on Saturday allotted one Lok Sabha seat each to two of its allies, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and the Kongunadu Makkal Desiya Katchi (KMDK).
While DMK’s long-time ally IUML has been allotted the Ramanathapuram seat, Namakkal constituency has been given to west-Tamil Nadu partner KMDK. Both the parties have been allotted the same seats they got in the 2019 general elections by the Dravidian major.
K M Kader Mohideen, national president of IUML, said his party’s incumbent MP from Ramanathapuram, Navas Kani, will be renominated for the poll from the seat. While the KMDK candidate will contest on DMK’s ‘rising sun’ symbol, IUML candidate will fight the election on ‘ladder’ symbol, party sources said.
The announcement comes weeks after seat-sharing talks were initiated with allies by the DMK for the April-May Lok Sabha polls. DMK president
M K Stalin and leaders of the two alliance parties signed the agreement at the DMK headquarters ‘Anna Arivalayam’ in Chennai. The main opposition AIADMK and the BJP have not announced their alliance partners yet.
DMK sources said the number of seats allotted to alliance parties may be the same as it was in 2019 LS election. Only the constituencies may change based on the request of alliance partners, sources said.
Leaders of VCK, CPI, and MDMK said they are scheduled to meet the DMK leadership on Monday to finalise the seats. While CPM has been invited for seat-sharing talks on Sunday, Tamil Nadu Congress chief K Selvaperunthagai told TNIE that the party may finalise the seats with the DMK on Tuesday.
In 2019 election, DMK alliance partners CPM, CPI, and VCK contested two LS seats each, while MDMK, KMDK, IUML and IJK contested from one seat each. Congress got nine seats in Tamil Nadu and the lone Puducherry seat. Of the 40 Lok Sabha seats, including Puducherry, the DMK-led alliance had won 39 seats. AIADMK had won in Theni constituency.
DMK may finalise talks with allies in a few days
Leaders of VCK, CPI, and MDMK said they will meet the DMK leadership on Monday to finalise the seats. While CPM has been invited for seat-sharing talks on Sunday, Tamil Nadu Congress chief K Selvaperunthagai said the party may finalise the seats with the DMK on Tuesday