PUDUCHERRY: The main opposition N R Congress is likely to fight the assembly elections in the union territory in 2021 in alliance with AIADMK and BJP, .
"NR Congress continues to be in the same alliance (with AIADMK and BJP )”, the party's founder President and Leader of Opposition N Rangasamy told newsmen during the inauguration of the party office on East Coast Road on Thursday. This is indicative of the party's interest in continuing in alliance with AIADMK.
In the 2016 assembly elections, the N R Congress fought without any alliance, but lost power winning just eight seats in the 30 member Assembly. Thereafter the alliance with AIADMK and BJP was forged during the by-elections to Nellithope constituency, where the alliance candidate Om Sakthi Segar of AIADMK unsuccessfully contested against Chief Minister V Narayanasamy , who contested in Congress-DMK alliance. Since then NR Congress has fought the Lok Sabha poll as well as byelections to Kamarajar Nagar and Thattanchavady Assembly constituencies in alliance with AIADMK and BJP. However the NR Congress candidates suffered defeat in all.
Now with the inauguration of the new party office in a spacious area, the party has new hope. The election work has commenced from today, Rangasamy said after inauguration. Almost all senior leaders, MLAs, functionaries were present on the occasion. While former Ministers Rajavelu, N G Paneerselvam, Kalyanasundaram and all party MLAs came from Puducherry, even party MLAs from Karaikal PNR Thiruuragan, Chandrapriyanka and others also participated with enthusiasm.
Though Rangasamy did not clarify further on the alliance, except saying that the party continues to be in the same alliance , it is clear that the party would like to continue with AIADMK in the next Assembly elections as party functionaries advised him to have a tie-up with the AIADMK..
With Tamilnadu chief minister Edappadi Palanisamy having announced that the AIADMK-BJP alliance would continue in Tamilnadu, in this backdrop Rangasamy is expected to remain in the same AIADMK-BJP alliance .