PUDUCHERRY: The INDIA bloc’s dream of forming the government in Puducherry may be heading on a collision course, as the Congress is contesting against its own allies — particularly DMK — in several constituencies, triggering sharp criticism and raising concerns over the alliance’s electoral prospects.
Although the Congress was allotted 16 seats as part of the alliance, it is now contesting in 23 constituencies, including five against DMK and one against VCK. This has drawn strong objections from alliance partners, who accuse the Congress of undermining seat-sharing arrangements.
While DMK has largely maintained silence, Left parties and VCK have openly criticised the Congress. CPI state secretary AM Saleem said the alliance had effectively collapsed, questioning the very idea of a coalition when key partners were in direct contests. He accused the Congress of giving the opposition — particularly the BJP-led alliance — an undue advantage.
VCK MP D Ravikumar criticised the Congress for fielding a candidate with RSS background in Ozhukarai, a seat allocated to VCK. T Sivasankar, an independent MLA who recently joined the Congress after moving away from BJP, has refused to withdraw, despite the seat-sharing agreement. This has cast uncertainty over VCK’s position within the alliance, said Ravikumar. VCK has decided to go ahead and contest three constituencies where it has filed nominations, appealing to voters to support its candidates in order to defeat the BJP-led alliance.
CPI will contest only from Ozhukarai constituency and has withdrawn from Thattanchavady. It has extended support to CPM in Thirubuvanai and Lawspet, to the Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI) in Kamarajar Nagar, and to VCK in Oussudu and Nettapakkam. In other constituencies, the party plans to back independent candidates who are prepared to firmly challenge the BJP led alliance, said Saleem.
CPM has also expressed concerns, stating that the Congress’ approach has weakened the alliance. Congress has withdrawn only one candidate — from Nellithope (Anandbabu Natarajan). DMK will contest from 13 seats, while VCK is contesting in three seats, including Uzhavarkarai against Congress.
These multi-cornered contests have created openings for NDA. In Kalapet, BJP-backed candidate PML Kalyanasundaram faces a fractured opposition, with Congress (MOHF Shajahan) and DMK (A Senthil) both in the fray. In Raj Bhavan constituency, the contest between Congress (R Kumaran) and DMK (Vignesh Kannan) is likely to play advantage for BJP state president VP Ramalingam.
A similar pattern is visible in Karaikal South, where Congress’ Sakthivel Prabhu is contesting against DMK’s former minister AMH Nazeem, potentially aiding BJP candidate M Arulmurugan. In Muthialpet, the contest between Congress’ Eeram G Rajendran and DMK’s Nantha T Saravanan could benefit AINRC’s Vaiyapuri Manikandan.
DMK also faces challenges in Mangalam (where Chief Minister N Rangasamy is contesting) and Thirubuvanai. In Ozhukarai, a multi-cornered contest involving Congress (T Sivasankar), CPI (Nara Kalainathan), and VCK (Selva Pushpalatha) is likely to benefit AINRC candidate K Narayanasamy.