AIADMK likely to contest 170 seats in TN polls as NDA seat-sharing talks progress

The AIADMK, the leading NDA constituent in Tamil Nadu, is reportedly aiming to contest about 170 seats in the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

The number of seats to be contested by the party was reportedly finalised during party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami's visit to New Delhi on March 19. According to a senior party leader, the decision to seek 170 seats for the party was to ensure that the AIADMK secures a majority on its own to form the government in the state.

The party needs to have 118 MLAs in the 234-seat Assembly to ensure a simple majority and form the government on its own. Party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami has set a target of winning 210 seats for the NDA.

Seat-sharing talks

While the BJP is expected to contest 20 seats, 10 more than it contested in the last Assembly election in 2021, the PMK (Anbumani) will likely be allocated about 17 seats.

Also read: Breaking from Jayalalithaa’s tradition, EPS camps in Delhi for seat-sharing talks

As for TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK, the latest party to come into the NDA fold, it is likely to be allocated nine seats. The GK Vasan-led TMC will be allocated three seats to contest.

As for the smaller NDA constituents in Tamil Nadu, they would either contest on the AIADMK’s two leaves or the BJP’s lotus symbol.

Amit Shah involved in negotiations

A senior BJP leader said that the Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been closely handling the negotiations over seat distribution and has already completed a first round of discussions with AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami.

Also Read: AIADMK will finalise seat-sharing, announce constituencies in 4 days, says Palaniswami

“Our party senior and Union Home Minister Amit Shah is directly involved in the seat-sharing talks and already the initial round with Palaniswami has been completed,” a senior BJP leader said.

Shah’s meeting in Delhi

According to him, Shah’s engagements in the national capital on the day also included separate meetings with PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss and AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran, as the contours of the alliance continue to be worked out.

Also Read: No place in TN where ganja is not available in DMK rule, says Palaniswami

With these consultations underway, the BJP’s Tamil Nadu election in-charge Piyush Goyal is expected to travel to Chennai shortly to take the discussions to the next stage and move towards finalising the arrangement among allies.

NDA's 2021 performance

In the previous Assembly election held in 2021, the AIADMK, then aligned with the BJP-led NDA, had contested 179 constituencies but managed to win only 66. The BJP, which had entered the fray in 20 seats, secured four victories, thereby marking its re-entry into the State Assembly after a gap of nearly 20 years.

Also Read: 'Two kings can't rule one nation': Why EPS is blocking TVK's NDA entry

The PMK, which had been allocated 23 constituencies in that election, returned with five wins. However, the party witnessed a split in the subsequent period following a leadership rift between its founder, S Ramadoss and his son, Anbumani.

While Anbumani has chosen to back the BJP in the current electoral cycle, the senior Ramadoss has aligned himself with VK Sasikala, a long-time associate of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.