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Updated March 7th, 2021 at 08:57 IST

Congress now gets invite from Kamal Haasan's MNM to join 3rd front for Tamil Nadu polls

Kamal Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) extended an invite to DMK ally Congress to join the third-front alliance ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections

Reported by: Koushik Narayanan
Congress
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Kamal Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) extended an invite to DMK ally Congress to join the third-front ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections as the grand old party's seat-sharing negotiations with the Dravidian party remained inconclusive. MNM governing council member CK Kumaravel on Saturday said they wanted the Congress to join its alliance as both Congress and MNM wanted to bring about a change in Tamil Nadu. Congress began interviewing candidates for the upcoming polls earlier this week even as seat-sharing talks with ally DMK were ongoing. 

READ | MNM's Pazha Karuppiah Calls DMK '3rd Front' Party After Rumoured Alliance Talks With Cong

Addressing reporters on Saturday while holding talks with allies Sarathkumar's all India Samathuva Makkal Katchi and Paariventhar's Indhiyaa Janayaga Katchi, the MNM leader said that the people were ready to accept the alliance as a third front and urged the Congress to join the front. However, CK Kumaravel categorically stated that it was up to Congress to decide if they wanted to join the front opposing the Dravidian parties. Elections are scheduled to take place in Tamil Nadu in a single-phase, with the polling of votes on April 6 and the counting of the votes on May 2. 

READ | Kamal Haasan Says MNM Is 'ready' After EC Announces Tamil Nadu Poll Dates

Earlier, reports on Thursday suggested a meeting between Congress and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM), triggering speculations of the DMK ally possibly joining the third front in the making ahead of polls in Tamil Nadu. However, TNCC chief KS Alagiri dismissed the reports and maintained that it was for DMK to decide on seat-sharing between the two allies and said that the ball was in their court. The speculated Third Front is most likely to be led by Kamal Haasan along with other allies opposing the Dravidian parties and their allies. 

Further, Tamil Nadu Congress chief KS Alagiri allegedly broke down while he was narrating the ordeal during the first-round of seat-sharing talks with DMK and revealed that senior leaders of his party were insulted during the discussion, as per sources. Deadlock continues between allies DMK and Congress over seat-sharing for the upcoming Assembly elections, with the latter demanding a 'respectable' number of seats while the former is reportedly willing to give just 26 seats to the grand old party. According to sources, the Congress leader broke into tears while he was describing the first round of talks with DMK and allegedly claimed that senior Congress leaders were insulted. 

READ | Ex-AIADMK Ally Sarath Kumar Meets MNM's Kamal Haasan To Discuss Alliance For Assembly Poll

MNM's Tamil Nadu outreach 

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Kamal Haasan's MNM received only around 4% of the overall votes, but it managed to capture 10% of all urban pockets, thereby explaining the party's city-town focus in the second leg of campaigning for Assembly elections.

READ | Kamal Haasan's MNM Announces 7-point Agenda For Welfare Of Women Ahead Of Tamil Nadu Polls

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Published March 7th, 2021 at 08:57 IST

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