Tamil Nadu Assembly polls: Day after getting Vanniyar quota, PMK allotted 23 seats in AIADMK alliance

Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK on Saturday sealed its alliance with Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) by allotting 23 seats for the April 6 assembly elections.

The seat-sharing agreement was signed a day after the government rushed through legislation providing 10.5 per cent internal reservation for Vanniyars, whose interests the PMK champions, within the 20 per cent reservation for Most Backward Classes (MBC).

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The PMK, which has been demanding separate reservation for Vanniyars for years together, raised its pitch ahead of the elections as it sensed that the AIADMK cannot afford to lose the party’s support.

With this, the AIADMK has become the first party in Tamil Nadu to affirm its alliance and finalise seat-sharing with an alliance partner. The agreement was finalised after Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and his deputy O Panneerselvam met PMK’s Anbumani Ramadoss and other leaders.“

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According to the agreement reached between the two parties, I am happy to announce that the PMK has been allotted 23 seats as part of the AIADMK alliance,” Panneerselvam said, at the conclusion of the talks.

PMK, which has a committed vote base of 5 per cent, is very influential among Vanniyars, a dominant community, spread across North Tamil Nadu. An alliance with PMK is expected to boost the AIADMK’s chances in the region – in the 2016 elections, the DMK won 35 and AIADMK 30 seats in the region. PMK contested alone.

After finalising the deal, Anbumani Ramadoss said the PMK settled for “less number of seats” in the alliance as the government fulfilled their demand for a separate reservation for Vanniyars.

“As far as this election is concerned, separate reservation for Vanniyars is the major issue for us. Since we have scored a victory on this count, we got less number in terms of seats. It will no way reduce our strength,” Anbumani told reporters here.

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Meanwhile, the AIADMK launched seat-sharing negotiations with the BJP as well on Saturday with senior leaders of the party receiving a delegation from the saffron outfit. While the BJP is expecting more than 20 seats, the AIADMK is said to have offered 15 to 17 seats. A deal is expected in the next few days.

The reservation, which according to Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami is “temporary” and will undergo changes once the data from a caste-based census is available, is a clear attempt to mollify the PMK.