Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: The Indian National Congress is set to finalise its candidates for the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections at a Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting in Delhi, with 85 per cent of names already decided, according to state unit chief K Selvaperunthagai.Selvaperunthagai said discussions involving senior leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, have largely concluded, with only a small portion of seats left to be finalised.“All India Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi and senior leaders discussed the candidates. 85% have been decided, 15% are pending. Today we are going to decide,” he said.The Congress will contest 28 constituencies as part of the alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which heads the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA).The DMK has retained the lion’s share, deciding to contest 164 of the 234 seats, while allocating the remaining 70 seats to its partners. Apart from Congress, key allies include the Communist Party of India (CPI) and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) with five seats each, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) with eight seats, and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) with four seats.Other alliance partners include the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) with 10 seats and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) with two seats, along with smaller regional players.Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK president M K Stalin has already unveiled candidates for several key constituencies.Stalin will contest from Kolathur, while Deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin has been fielded from Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni.Other prominent candidates include Mahesh from Kanyakumari, Appavu from Radhapuram, Vahab from Palayamkottai, Kalaikathiravan from Tenkasi, and KKSSR Ramachandran from Aruppukottai. Additional names include Velu from Mylapore and Ma Subramanian from Saidapet.The main contest in the state is expected between the DMK-led SPA and the NDA led by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which includes the BJP and PMK.A recent survey by polling agency Lok Poll projected a strong performance for the DMK alliance, estimating 181 to 189 seats with a vote share of 40.1 per cent. The AIADMK-led alliance was projected to secure 38 to 42 seats.Tamil Nadu will go to polls in a single phase on April 23, with counting scheduled for May 4.The last date for filing nominations is April 6, scrutiny will take place on April 7, and candidates can withdraw nominations until April 9.With candidate lists nearing completion and alliances finalised, political parties are entering the final phase of preparations for what is expected to be a closely watched electoral contest in the state.
