The Amma Makkal Munnettra Kazagam (AMMK) has reached a seat-sharing agreement with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tamil Nadu for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. As part of this deal, AMMK will contest two Lok Sabha seats in alliance with the BJP, according to party chief TTV Dhinakaran.
Dhinakaran, who formed AMMK after splitting from the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in 2017, stated that while the BJP was willing to offer more seats, AMMK only requested two seats, prioritizing the victory of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over the number of seats.
The specific constituencies that AMMK will contest will be announced by the BJP. This development follows the BJP's alliance with Anbumani Ramadoss's Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), which was allocated 10 out of the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu.
Dhinakaran expressed confidence in the BJP's growing presence in Tamil Nadu but did not confirm whether he would personally contest in the Lok Sabha elections. Additionally, AMMK is awaiting the Election Commission's decision on the party symbol, having applied for the cooker symbol.
Dhinakaran also criticized the AIADMK, suggesting that the party's strength was diminishing due to the selfish interests of certain individuals, likely referring to Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS). Regarding Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje's remarks linking people from Tamil Nadu to the Rameshwaram Cafe blast, Dhinakaran stated that such portrayals of an entire state negatively are unacceptable, although Karandlaje had apologized for her comments.
