DMDK won’t ally with PMK, says Premalatha

DMDK won’t ally with PMK, says Premalatha

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:31.01.2021

DMDK treasurer Premalatha Vijayakant on Saturday told her partymen to get ready to contest alone in all 234 constituencies and said the DMDK would not be part of any alliance in which the PMK was present. She also hinted that party founder Vijayakant would make an “important announcement” on his wedding anniversary on Sunday.

Speaking to party functionaries in charge of the 234 constituencies in the state, Premalatha urged them to set up booth-level committees without missing anyone and post additional office-bearers in the constituencies to take up election work. “She said there is no need to wait for ‘others’ and we should start the election work in all 234 constituencies,” said a functionary. The DMDK leader was averse to tying up with the PMK, said the functionary.

Premalatha had recently said that the party wants to contest in 41 seats as it did during the 2011 assembly polls, as part of the AIADMK alliance. The DMDK, however, snapped ties with the AIADMK, within 100 days of Jayalalithaa assuming office as CM.

The party contested as part of the four-party alliance, People’s Welfare Front, in 2016 and came a cropper. After sewing up an alliance with the AIADMK in 2019 LS polls, the DMDK leadership is upset over the ruling party not commencing electoral talks with it even as elections are inching closer. “Premalatha has been repeatedly extending support to V K Sasikala, Jayalalithaa’s close-aide, lauding her sacrifices. She also said Edappadi K Palaniswami was chosen as CM by the party and not by the people. It remains unclear if the AIADMK-DMDK alliance will materialise,” a senior DMDK leader said.