PUDUCHERRY: The role of TVK has emerged as a key point of contention within the Puducherry Congress, as the party grapples with internal unrest following its dismal performance in the Assembly election.
Puducherry Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) vice president PK Devadass has attributed the poll debacle to party’s decision to ally with the DMK instead of TVK. He and former CM V Narayanasamy favoured an alliance with the TVK, but other members of the PCC consultative committee opted for the DMK under what Devadass described as “pressure from the Dravidian party”.
These members included PCC president V Vaithilingam, former MLA M Vaithianathan, and former ministers M Kandasamy and MOHF Shajahan, along with former government whip RKR Anantharaman.
“TVK cornered both Congress votes and anti-incumbency sentiment,” Devadass said, suggesting that a tie-up with TVK could have altered the outcome. He said TVK had offered 22 seats to Congress as part of an alliance.
The Congress, which contested 22 seats of the 30 seats in alliance with the DMK and VCK, managed to secure just one seat.
Amid the fallout, a section of Congress workers staged a protest in front of the party office demanding the resignation of Vaithilingam. They alleged that the leadership allowed six rebel candidates to contest, none of whom won, with five even forfeiting their deposits. They also claimed that the rebels strained the Congress-DMK alliance.
Former officer-bearer MP Saravanan, who was part of the protest, accused the PCC leadership of denying tickets to certain aspirants, some of whom later contested and won in alliance with TVK. He argued that their inclusion could have improved the party’s tally.
Additionally, the dissenting group alleged that candidate selection indirectly benefited the NDA. They pointed to Vaithilingam contesting against Chief Minister N Rangasamy, where he finished fourth.
Responding to the criticism, Devadass dismissed the protesters’ claims, alleging that many of them had worked against the Congress in the past, including during the Lok Sabha election.
