The BJP’s headache has commenced even before it could realise its dreams of cobbling a coalition Government at the Centre after the Lok Sabha elections this summer.
The BJP’s minor ally KMDK has threatened to follow PMK’s lead in walking out if it is not allotted the Tirupur Parliamentary constituency. The seat in the western belt has become a bone of contention between the BJP’s principal ally the DMDK and the Kongunadu Makkal Desiya Katchi as both are keen on fielding candidates from here.
“If the BJP fails to allot this seat to us, we will enter the fray in 14 constituencies in the Kongu region,” KMDK headquarters secretary S Suryamurthy warned in Erode. Not willing to concede the seat, some DMDK cadres attempted to block the road and threatened self-immolation.
Confusion reigned supreme in Tirupur on Sunday with conflicting reports emerging that the BJP itself wanted to contest from the constituency.
The KDMK has pointed out that its parent party, the KMK, had polled over 10 per cent votes in the constituency in 2009 and hence it had better winning prospects in the seat.
District functionaries have appealed to the DMDK leadership to snap ties with the BJP if the seat is not allotted.Meanwhile, Suryamurthy felt that the BJP was undermining the KMDK by refusing to allot either of the seats sought it — Erode, Tirupur, Pollachi or Namakkal.
The KMDK was unwilling to take Karur, which is apparently being sought to be given to it, as none of the allies in the BJP front have a considerable vote base in the constituency.
According to him, since the MDMK was keen on retaining its sitting MP Ganesamurthy in Erode, the KMDK had sought Tirupur hoping to field its general secretary E R Eswaran.