Congress DMK to continue talks

Two rounds of talks between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Congress to identify constituencies, where the two key UPA partners will contest in the April 13 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, remained inconclusive on Thursday. “The talks were cordial and both sides were happy. It will continue tomorrow also,” TNCC chief K.V. Thangkabalu told reporters after the second round of talks with the DMK election panel. Asked if the two parties will finalise the constituencies on Friday, he only said, “The talks will continue tomorrow also.” After sealing the seat-sharing deal, the DMK and Congress on Thursday set in motion the process of identifying the constituencies.
After a 45-minute meeting at the DMK party headquarters in Chennai earlier in the day, Mr. Thangkabalu had expressed the hope that identification of the constituencies would be finalised by Thursday. The five-member Congress Election Panel Committee, including Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram and party spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan, held the talks with DMK chief and Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi. The DMK and the Congress on Tuesday finalised a seat-sharing agreement, under which the Congress will contest 63 seats and the DMK in 121 in the State.