AIADMK,DMDK begin talks on alliance

The two parties have been engaged in parleys for sometime now,but no headway has been made.

Stealing a march over the UPA ahead of the Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu,the AIADMK on Thursday initiated steps to strike a deal with the DMDK,a tie-up that has the potential to unsettle or even unseat the ruling coalition.

On Thursday,as the AIADMK cadre celebrated J Jayalalithaas birthday with a vow to return her to power,a team of DMDK negotiators drove to the AIADMK headquarters to hold the first round of formal talks on stitching an alliance.

The two parties have been engaged in parleys for sometime now,but no headway has been made,apparently due to differences in perception about the strength of the DMDK and thus the number of seats it would contest.

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It is one thing to take a political stand and quite another matter to talk about the number of seats. As far as political stand goes,we want to oust the DMK regime,so we are with AIADMK, said DMDK leader Panruti Ramachandran after the meeting.

By holding a formal meeting instead of secret discussions,the two parties have sent a clear message to the DMK-Congress-PMK-VCK combine. Both the AIADMK and the DMDK banking heavily on the legacy of former CM and AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran and have almost complimentary vote-banks.