DMK-Congress alliance intact, talks smooth for 2026 polls: TN chief

Tamil Nadu Congress President K Selvaperunthagai met CM MK Stalin, confirming the DMK-Congress alliance remains intact for the 2026 Assembly polls. He described talks as smooth and downplayed speculation over seat-sharing negotiations.

After meeting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, State Congress President K Selvaperunthagai on Tuesday said the alliance between the DMK and Congress remains intact and discussions are progressing without friction ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

"Everything is going on smoothly. I am a soldier of the party. Whatever the high command says, I will follow. AICC will make the final decision," Selvaperunthagai told reporters after the meeting. Downplaying speculations over seat-sharing talks, he added, "This was just a courtesy call, and we went there. There are no speculations and no negotiations."

The meeting comes amid ongoing discussions between the DMK and Congress to finalise a seat-sharing formula for the 2026 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly polls. Congress MP P Chidambaram was also part of the discussions at Stalin's residence, which were seen as crucial in resolving the reported deadlock within the DMK-led alliance.

Alliance 'Natural and Ideological'

Addressing rumours of a rift, Selvaperunthagai on Monday clarified that negotiations are a routine aspect of electoral politics. "Negotiations take place in every election, and each party will demand more seats, and a settlement will eventually be reached. The same will happen here. We're asking for a few more seats, and a settlement will be reached," he said.

Calling the DMK-Congress partnership under the INDIA bloc a "natural" and "ideological" alliance, he insisted there was no disagreement between the two parties. He also dismissed speculation about backchannel talks with Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, stating that neither he nor the party high command had initiated any such communication.

AIADMK Strengthens NDA Alliance

Meanwhile, Edappadi K Palaniswami met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on March 2 to discuss the political situation in the state and strategies to strengthen the NDA ahead of the polls. Palaniswami said the AIADMK is in talks with several parties for potential alliances but ruled out any discussions involving VK Sasikala's party.

Notably, the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly will go to the polls in the first half of 2026, where the MK Stalin-led alliance will look to project the 'Dravidian Model 2.0' for the win against the BJP-AIADMK alliance. (ANI)

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