Tamil Nadu Polls: Setback For AIADMK; Actor Vijayakanth's DMDK Walks Out Of NDA Over Seat-Sharing

Tamil Nadu Polls: The DMDK, which had reportedly demanded 23 seats for the upcoming electoral battle, is said to have been offered 13 assembly constituencies besides one Rajya Sabha seat as part of the alliance.

Actor Vijayakanth | PTI File Image

In what comes as a major setback to the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, actor Vijayakanth’s Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) has walked out of the alliance after expressing disappointment on the issue of seat-sharing. This came as the DMDK announced AIADMK refused to allot the number of seats that were sought even after three rounds of discussions.

The DMDK, which had reportedly demanded 23 seats for the upcoming electoral battle, is said to have been offered 13 assembly constituencies besides one Rajya Sabha seat as part of the alliance.

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The party in a statement said, “they failed to allocate the seats and constituencies demanded”.

“We had a discussion with the district secretaries today (Tuesday), and based on their opinions, we have decided to end ties with the AIADMK-BJP alliance,” the DMDK added.

The DMDK has, however, not yet disclosed whether it would contest the Tamil Nadu assembly polls alone.

This move may boost the chances of the DMK-led opposition as it is the first state election for the ruling AIADMK since J. Jayalalithaa’s death.

The elections for the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly will be held in a single phase on April 6 while the votes will be counted on May 2.