Tamil Nadu polls: DMDK fails to strike alliance with AMMK too

CHENNAI: The DMDK, which quit the AIADMK-led alliance as the number of seats offered was too few, on Friday failed to strike an alliance with the AMMK led by TTV Dhinakaran either. Earlier, the party was in touch with the DMK to join the opposition alliance also but the talks were not successful.

Though there is speculation that the DMDK might go it alone this time, the party’s leadership did not make any announcement about its next course of action on Friday. Meanwhile, Dhinakaran has released a list of 130 candidates on Friday evening taking the total number of seats allotted to his party aspirants and allies to 208.

The DMDK contested in the 2006 Assembly elections on its own and party founder Vijayakant alone made it to the State Assembly. In the 2011 Assembly elections, the DMDK forged an alliance with the AIADMK and contested in 41 seats, winning in 29 seats. Vijayakant also became the Leader of Opposition, pushing the DMK to become the third largest party in the Assembly.

However, in the 2016 Assembly elections, the DMDK formed an alliance with the Left parties, MDMK and VCK and contested in 104 seats but could not win even a single seat.