Stalin backs Rahul amid seat-sharing talks

TAmil Nadu chief government minister MK joseph stalin on wed offered back up to his “ comrade” Rahul Gandhi and condemned the suspension of opposition MPs from the Lok Sabha, amid a stalemate between the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Congress over seat sharing in the state ahead of the assembly election.“Why is the Union BJP Government fearing the questions raised by the Leader of Opposition and my brother Rahul Gandhi?” Stalin asked on X.“The government must be prepared to answer the members of the House and provide clarity on matters of national security and economic interests. I strongly condemn the suspension of eight opposition MPs and demand that it be revoked immediately so that their democratic right to speak on issues of national importance is restored,” added the chief minister.DMK MP Kanimozhi criticised the suspension, calling it “unacceptable”.On Tuesday, eight Opposition members were suspended from the Lok Sabha for the remainder of the Budget Session for violating rules and “throwing papers on the chair” following uproar over Gandhi’s insistent reference to the 2020 standoff with China in eastern Ladakh.Meanwhile, the DMK said it will form a seat sharing committee this week and begin negotiations with allies from the second week of February. To be sure, the Congress had formed a team for the state back last November.Meanwhile, Kanimozhi chaired a meeting of the party’s election manifesto committee in Chennai on Wednesday. After the meeting, she told reporters that alliance talks were ongoing with the Congress party, adding that decisions on the number of constituencies will be made by the negotiation committee, and any new party joining the alliance will be announced by the chief minister.“Alliance talks are currently underway with the Congress party. No discussions have taken place regarding the number of constituencies. The decision on the number of constituencies will be made by the negotiation committee. If any new party joins the alliance, the chief minister will make the announcement,” she said.On January 29, Kanimozhi held a discussion with Rahul Gandhi in Delhi to smoothen out the differences between the two partiesA senior DMK leader said the party is “willing to allot not more than 28 seats and a Rajya Sabha berth.”“There are so many allies to accommodate and as always the highest number of seats will be allotted to the Congress,”the leader added. The offer is slightly higher than the 25 seats that the Congress had contested in the 2021 assembly elections, out of which the party won 18.However, the Congress is aiming for 35-40 assembly seats, whereas a section that is unhappy with few seats wants the party to align with actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). “The strains were visible, with Congress leaders in the state openly speaking of an alliance with Vijay and demanding more seats with the DMK. However, the high command has decided to stick with long term ally DMK. The final decision will be between Stalin and Rahul,” a state Congress leader said.(with PTI inputs)