Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has firmly told alliance partners that the DMK will not allocate constituencies it won in the 2021 Assembly election to other parties in the upcoming poll, according to party sources.
The DMK had won 133 seats in 2021 under the “Rising Sun” symbol and is keen to contest those constituencies again. However, the party is also considering replacing some sitting MLAs in these seats, citing public dissatisfaction and the need to field new faces.
Sources said Stalin has reviewed constituency-level ground reports, including intelligence inputs, on seats previously allotted to allies—both those they won and those they lost. The assessment reportedly indicates that some ally-held constituencies may not be favourable for them this time, prompting the DMK to reconsider repeating the same seat-sharing arrangement.
The DMK leadership is said to be focused on winning again and forming a government for a second consecutive term—something the party has not achieved in its history. As part of this strategy, Stalin is reportedly unwilling to cede DMK-won seats and is also not inclined to retain certain ally-won seats if local feedback suggests poor performance or weak public standing.
As an example, sources cited intelligence warnings that if the Congress contests again in some constituencies allotted to it last time—such as Ooty, Tenkasi and Vriddhachalam—it could face reduced chances, with its vote base in those areas said to be only in the few thousands. The DMK is therefore considering taking over such seats and offering alternative constituencies to the Congress, the sources added.
