Double incumbency, Dhinakaran and DMK: Tamil Nadu LS polls a mess that couldn't be worse for BJP, AIADMK It was in 2004 that the BJP had a tie-up with AIADMK, and the Congress with the DMK. After 2004, this is the first time BJP is tying up with a main Dravidian party though it has been sharing seats with smaller ones. The DMK continued its alliance with Congress in 2009, but abandoned it in 2013, protesting against the Centre’s stand on Sri Lankan Tamils. Having resumed its association with Congress in the 2016 Assembly poll, the DMK is going ahead with it in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls as well. So, the state is back to the 2004 kind of situation, though the composition of alliances in terms of smaller parties varies.
Of the state’s 39 seats, DMK and AIADMK are contesting in 20 seats each, leaving the rest to alliance partners. While Congress is contesting in nine seats, the BJP has put up candidates in five seats in their respective alliances. The 2014 Modi wave obviated the need for the BJP to have any support from Tamil Nadu parties, but the looming uncertainty over the 2019 result makes them once again potential king-makers.
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