Tamil Nadu BJP President says talks on with DMK, Stalin refutes claim

Just a day after DMK President MK Stalin met TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao in what was termed a “courtesy visit” by the DMK, Tamil Nadu state BJP President and Tuticorin parliamentary constituency candidate Tamilisai Soundararajan said that the DMK President is in talks with the BJP. 

While addressing reporters in Tuticorin she responded to a question on DMK being in touch with he BJP, “it is true, on the one side it is Rahul Gandhi, on the other it is KCR and then Modi. Everyone knows that the DMK changes colours”.“They are speaking via someone, they are establishing a connection”, she elaborated on the DMK’s outreach to the saffron party. However, Stalin on Tuesday evening issued statement denying any such talks. He said,"If Tamilisai & Modi prove I was in contact with BJP to form an alliance with them, I'll quit politics. If they fail to prove, will she & Modi quit politics? I condemn the statement made by BJP State President Tamilisai". 

This comment by Tamilisai gains significance as the DMK President Stalin was the first to endorse Rahul Gandhi as Prime Minister and revive the UPA-era alliance between the parties. The DMK has also been campaigning vociferously against what they call the  “anti-people” and “fascist” Modi Government. Ideologically too the Dravidian, rationalist, Tamil nationalist roots of the DMK do not match with the saffron party, and the two parties have been at loggerheads except for their alliance during the Vajpayee-NDA years. 

Speaking to WION on Tamilisai’s comment, Senior political analyst Dr. Sumanth C Raman said, “the very fact that BJP is talking about parties like DMK shows that they are not very confident about a majority.”Expressing confidence about a BJP victory, Tamilisai stated that everyone knows that BJP is winning, K Chandrasekhar Rao is wet hungry and he is trying to bring some sort of a change on 23rd May (results day). 

Quoting unspecified opinion polls Tamilisai said that the Narendra Modi is coming back to power as Prime Minister.  Speaking on Stalin’s meeting with Telangana Chief Minister KCR, she said, “ KCR met Stalin, but it won’t make a difference, how many ever fronts emerge it will only benefit the BJP. She questioned M K Stalin on why he did not firmly say that Rahul Gandhi would become the Prime Minister, post his meeting with KCR.

For this election, DMK is in an alliance with the Congress, Left parties, and the Congress is contesting in 10 seats across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. The AIADMK is in an alliance with the BJP, PMK and DMDK, with the saffron party candidates are contesting from five parliamentary constituencies.   The results for the Lok Sabha Polls will be out on 23rd May.