Battle lines have been clearly drawn for the April 13 Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu with DMK and Congress clinching a seat-sharing deal after a fortnight of hard bargaining.

The ruling DMK, in alliance with Congress, PMK, Viduthlalai Chirthaigal, Kongu Nadu Munnetra Kazhagam, IUML and Moovendar Munetra Kazhagam would take on the rainbow alliance led by the Opposition AIADMK, with actor politician Vijaykant’s DMDK, MDMK and Left parties as also some minor parties.

Though DMK clinched the deal with Congress after a logjam over seat allocation and identification, cadres of both parties are yet to forget the mental agony they underwent all these days, according to political analysts here.

The high commands will find it a tough task to prevail on them to go for election campaign straightaway, they said.

Maligned by the 2G spectrum scam, which the AIADMK has already made an election issue, DMK is finding it tough to sail through the polls, despite doling out many freebie schemes to people, especially popular among rural folk.

Congress, for the first time in recent memory, did not bow to its regional ally and stood firm on its demand of 63 seats and got it. The Congress thinking was that in the post poll scenario, their role would be crucial if neither DMK nor AIADMK along with their allies gets an absolute majority.

Published on March 9, 2011