AIADMK unlikely to share Rajya Sabha seats

CHENNAI: The AIADMK leadership has decided to reserve both Rajya Sabha seats for itself and is confident of sailing through the biennial elections on June 19 with the support of the BJP, which has four MLAs.

A senior party functionary and one of the top contenders for the Rajya Sabha seat confided that party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is “unwilling to cede a Rajya Sabha seat to the alliance and is firm on his decision” and a formal announcement is likely on June 2. He also urged the BJP to extend its support in the biennial polls for the party’s candidate. One of the seats will be reserved for a minority candidate, aimed at neutralising the strong discontent among the Muslim community following the revival of the alliance with the saffron party for the Assembly polls.

As the Christian and Muslim communities are expected to play a decisive role in over 80 Assembly constituencies, a senior leader said, “The AIADMK has to nominate a Muslim candidate out of political compulsion.”

Categorically rejecting DMDK leader Premalalitha Vijayakanth’s statement on Thursday that the AIADMK should honour its commitment like the DMK and allot one of the two seats to them, a former AIADMK minister from the western region stated that while the AIADMK leader had entered into an “agreement with the DMDK”, it never committed to when a seat would be given. “What is the guarantee they will join the AIADMK-led alliance?” he added.

Former labour minister Anwhar Raajhaa, who also served as LS member between 2014 and 2019 when the controversial bills regarding the CAA were moved in Parliament, is considered to have a “bright chance”. However, sources indicated that party presidium chairperson A Tamilmagan Hussain also has an equal opportunity, though his health condition may spoil his chances.

For the second seat, several names are doing the rounds, including former ministers D Jayakumar, S Semmalai, and ST Chellapandian.