Congress, BJP delay candidate lists for Tamil Nadu polls as nomination deadline nears

Even as the deadline for filing nominations for the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections draws to a close on Monday, with only a two-day window remaining, both the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party are dragging their feet in releasing their lists of candidates.

This is in stark contrast to the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the principal opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, as well as their allies, which have already announced their candidates and begun campaigning.

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“In a couple of days, we will decide on the candidates and announce the list,” Union Minister Piyush Goyal, BJP in charge of the Tamil Nadu elections, told the media recently.

He expressed confidence after holding discussions with local party leaders on potential candidates and releasing a “chargesheet” listing alleged corruption charges against the DMK government led by M. K. Stalin.

There is significant internal jostling within the BJP over seat allocations, with some leaders, including former state president K. Annamalai, reportedly unhappy over being sidelined.

On the other hand, the Congress is awaiting approval of its candidate list from the central leadership. The list of probable candidates has been scrutinised by a panel comprising TNCC president K. Selvaperunthagai and AICC in charge Girish Chodankar.

“Rahul is engaged in campaigning for the Kerala Assembly elections, and hence it is taking time. We will release the list soon,” Selvaperunthagai told the media. Senior leaders are currently camping in the national capital for final discussions.

The Congress has secured 28 seats from the DMK after prolonged negotiations, while the BJP has been allotted 27 seats by the AIADMK, in addition to six seats from two allies to be contested on the party’s Lotus symbol. It has been nearly a week since both national parties were allotted constituencies, but they are yet to announce their candidates.

Without waiting for their national allies, both Dravidian majors have shifted into full campaign mode. The DMK, led by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, launched its campaign from his hometown Tiruvarur with a massive rally.

Earlier, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami, accompanied by BJP leader and former Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, began his campaign with a show of strength from the Mylapore constituency in Chennai on March 26, shortly after releasing the second list of candidates and allocating seats to allies.

Meanwhile, BJP state president Nainar Nagenthran, Tamilisai Soundararajan, and Union Minister L. Murugan have already begun campaigning in Sattur, Mylapore, and Avinashi, respectively, even before the official candidate list is announced.

The Congress is also engaged in discussions with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) over a possible seat swap—seeking Padmanabhapuram instead of Vilavancode in Kanniyakumari district.