Getting ready for the general elections next year,the opposition DMDK will soon be holding its executive committee meeting where the focus will be on potential alliances,especially the rumoured one with the Congress. The party announced on Tuesday that the meeting,to be presided over by DMDK founder-leader Vijaykant on Sunday,would discuss the future strategies and Lok Sabha elections. What sparked speculation about a possible tie-up was a phone call that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi made on August 25 to Vijaykant,ostensibly to wish him on his birthday. Senior leaders including Mukul Wasnik,union ministers G K Vasan and Jayanti Natarajan,and a host of state-level Congress leaders also greeted Vijaykant. Though the two parties have held informal explorations over the years,serious discussions for a potential alliance did not progress,as the Congress has been locked in a mutually beneficial partnership with the DMK,a direct rival of DMDK. The closest they came to an understanding was ahead of the recent Rajya Sabha election when the Congress initially responded positively to DMDKs overtures,only to back DMK candidate Kanimozhi eventually. Senior leaders of both parties refused to comment on the development,maintaining that it was still too early to predict the possible combination for the coming elections.
