A growing unease is surfacing within the Tamil Nadu unit of the Congress, with several state leaders privately expressing dissatisfaction over how the party’s central leadership is handling seat-sharing negotiations with the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).
Sources told India Today TV that some Tamil Nadu Congress leaders feared that the party’s current approach could weaken its bargaining position ahead of the Assembly elections, likely to take place in April this year. They believe the Congress cannot mount a credible fight in the state without the core backing of the DMK led by Chief Minister MK Stalin.
According to sources, the DMK has informally indicated willingness to allot the Congress around 25 Assembly seats along with one Rajya Sabha berth. However, the Congress high command is said to be pushing for nearly 45 seats, a demand that has worried sections of the state unit.
State leaders are concerned that projecting a hard line may not force the DMK to concede more ground. Some within the Tamil Nadu Congress have even begun informally discussing the possibility of a split in favour of aligning more closely with the DMK’s position, sources said.
The DMK, which heads the ruling alliance in the southern state, is also believed to be using the promise of a Rajya Sabha seat as leverage in the negotiations. Sources indicated the Congress has been given time until March 6 to break the deadlock, with the implication that failure to reach an agreement could cost it the Upper House berth until next year.
Six Rajya Sabha seats from Tamil Nadu are due to fall vacant in April 2026. Of these, four are currently held by the DMK and two by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).
The Congress, a key constituent of the DMK-led front, is understood to be seeking a larger share than the 25 Assembly seats it contested in the 2021 state polls, along with a Rajya Sabha seat and a greater role in government if the alliance returns to power.
The Congress leadership is also believed to be factoring in the emergence of actor-politician Vijay’s party, Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), as a potential pressure point in negotiations.
However, leaders in the Tamil Nadu unit are worried that relying on the so-called “Vijay factor” may not be enough to make the DMK yield.
Adding to the churn, TVK leader CTR Nirmal Kumar recently claimed the DMK would struggle to win even 25 to 30 seats if the Congress were to walk out of the alliance.
He described the Congress as a “natural partner” with nationwide appeal and alleged that sections of the DMK leadership had failed to accord the national party “basic respect”, contributing to the current friction.
With the March 6 deadline approaching, the impasse threatens to deepen fault lines within the Congress’s Tamil Nadu unit even as formal negotiations with the DMK continued.
AIADMK TAKES POTSHOT
Meanwhile, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), which recently joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) for the upcoming Assembly polls, slammed both Congress and the DMK for compromising with the lives of common man to keep their dynastic politics alive.
“Sources say that DMK agreed for 1 RS seat for Congress. That shall be for Kharge. Karnataka Congress which is going ahead to construct Mekadatu dam and stop cauvery for Tamil Nadu is given a RS seat by this Traitor DMK to keep the DMK dynasty family hopes alive. The puppet MK Stalin of TN has still not condemned #Mekadatu. Let the people of TN know whenever Congress and DMK form an ally, it is at the cost of the lives of common man of Tamil Nadu,” AIADMK spokesperson Kovai Sathyan said in a post on X.
