Wait Till Saturday, DMDK Tells BJP

Keeping the BJP on tenterhooks, the DMDK has sought time till Saturday to commit itself to an alliance with the saffron party.

Keeping the BJP on tenterhooks, the DMDK has sought time till Saturday to commit itself to an alliance with the saffron party.

Disclosing this to Express, a senior BJP leader admitted that the situation was still fluid on the poll pact. However, there is optimism in the BJP camp, since it has dangled the possibility of accommodating the DMDK in the Rajya Sabha.

With DMDK chief Vijayakant returning to the city from Singapore on Monday night, alliance talks for the coming Lok Sabha elections are poised to enter a crucial phase. According to the BJP functionary, while the DMDK has reportedly scaled down its demand from 20 Lok Sabha seats to 18, the saffron party was ready to offer 12. Further, he said BJP’s prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi has strictly instructed to say ‘no’ to any demand for ‘funds’ from the allies. However, he was okay with the idea of a Rajya Sabha berth to the ally.

Status quo also prevails in the talks with the PMK after it stood admant in its demand for at least 10 seats with the BJP offering eight. The disagreement persists not only over the numbers, but also on the constituencies. The situation has been further compounded because of divergence within the PMK since Dr S Ramadoss wants to go it alone, while his son Dr Anbumani, is pushing for an alliance. “The success of the BJP-PMK talks, therefore, hinges on how far Dr Anbumani is able to convince his father on the alliance,” BJP sources said.

However, the PMK has reportedly told the BJP to settle all issues with the DMDK first before approaching it.

MDMK’s Vaiko has reportedly been offered five seats.

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The New Indian Express
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