Chennai: With less time left for announcing candidates and filing nominations for the State Assembly elections, the ruling AIADMK and the main opposition DMK, the two major parties of Tamilnadu, are holding last minute discussions with their respective alliance partners.
Sources in the AIADMK said Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Deputy CM O Panneerselvam, the joint coordinator and the coordinator of the party, respectively, held discussions with senior leaders of the party and also the allies.
It is said that the BJP and the PMK are now demanding some more seats from the AIADMK, as the DMDK has walked out of the alliance. Talks are also on with G K Vasan’s TMC.
Meanwhile, in the DMK camp, identification of seats for Congress and other allies has started. Also, the M K Stalin-led party today allocated a seat to All India Forward Bloc.
Sources said that though party president Stalin had said that the list would be released today (March 10), its seat sharing process with allies would be finalised only today.
“Hence, the list will be delayed by a day or two,” they said. Meanwhile, some other sources said the first set of candidates would be announced today.
The DMK on Sunday assured it would provide financial assistance of Rs 1,000 per month to all women family heads in Tamilnadu if the party was voted to power in the Assembly elections.
This would benefit all families that get essential commodities from the Public Distribution Outlets, Stalin told a grand election rally in Tiruchi, releasing a 10- year vision document for the development of the State.
In the AIADMK camp, sources said that with the DMDK exiting from the alliance, the AIADMK is eyeing to contest from more seats.
Panneerselvam and Palaniswami held marathon discussions at the party headquarters since Tuesday.
Palaniswami on Monday announced the provision of six cooking gas (LPG) cylinders in a year free to each family and Rs 1,500 per month to the woman-head of every family, as part of his party’s promises for the Assembly poll.