The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Thursday slammed its close ally Congress for showing willingness to form an alliance with the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Tamil Nadu.
The Vijay-led TVK delivered a stellar debut in the recently concluded assembly elections by winning 108 seats, rendering a major blow to MK Stalin’s DMK in Tamil Nadu after votes were counted and results declared on May 4. The TVK needs 10 more seats to form a stable government. Track updates on TN govt formation
As Stalin chaired a meeting of the newly elected party MLAs at DMK headquarters on Thursday, Anna Arivalayam, the party passed four resolutions as it lashed out at the Congress for its shifting alliance. The meeting strongly condemned the decision of the Congress to move away from the secular progressive alliance, stating that the party had failed to change its “old political character”, ANI reported, citing DMK sources.
The Congress on Tuesday decided to actor-politician Vijay’s TVK in the interests of “protecting the Constitution” and secular values. However, the Congress support alone still won’t get TVK the numbers it needs to breach the minimum mark in the 243-seat Assembly. The Congress has won five seats which still won’t be enough for the TVK to reach the half-way mark of 118 seats.
What the DMK resolution on Congress said
As the DMK held a meeting with its newly elected MLAs, the party passed four resolutions, among which was the one that took on the Congress for allying with the TVK — DMK’s direct opponent in Tamil Nadu, while the Congress is a close ally of the Congress in the Opposition bloc of INDIA.
The resolution said the Congress had secured one Rajya Sabha seat and 28 Assembly constituencies as part of the DMK-led alliance, and accused the party of shifting towards an alternative front within days by jeopardising the victory achieved through the hard work of alliance cadres, ANI reported citing sources.
While the party thanked the people of Tamil Nadu and also its alliance partners, it authorised supremo Stalin to take political decisions. The resolution stated that Tamil Nadu was not prepared for another election and emphasised the need for a stable government in the state. It also stressed that forces opposed to the principles of the Dravidian movement should not be allowed to gain space.
TVK’s big win, and yet not there
The TVK, despite its big gains in the assembly polls, lacks the number of seats required to form a stable government. Tamil Nadu governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Thursday also conveyed to Vijay that his party does not have the requisite support to form the government, and the fledgling party simultaneously stepped up its efforts to convince the Left parties, VCK and the IUML to rope them in to shore up numbers.
“During the meeting, the Hon’ble Governor explained that the requisite majority support in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, essential for forming the government, has not been established,” Lok Bhavan said in a press release, PTI reported.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K Selvaperunthagai on Thursday called for massive protest demonstrations across district headquarters in Tamil Nadu on Friday, at 11 am, condemning the BJP-led Union Government and the Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar for allegedly acting against the Constitution by attempting to prevent the TVK from forming the government.