DMDK may stay in NDA only if Vijayakanth made CM nominee

CHENNAI: In the wake of MDMK walking out of NDA and another partner, PMK, attacking the Modi government on various counts, DMDK, the biggest partner in the alliance, will hold its executive committee and general council meeting on January 7 in Coimbatore to take stock of the situation.
Though the party has said its leader Vijayakanth would discuss future plans in general, sources said the decision-making body would specifically look at the strategy for the assembly polls and the possibility of continuing in NDA.Vijayakanth is hopeful that BJP would announce him as the chief ministerial candidate. But with BJP claiming it was working towards forming a government on its own, it is anybody's guess as to how the alliance could continue.
"Our leader still has faith in the central leadership of BJP. He has lauded PM Narendra Modi for his efforts in rescuing five TN fishermen from Sri Lanka. But we may not continue in the BJP alliance if they fail to announce Vijayakanth as the CM candidate of the front," a DMDK district secretary told TOI.
A section of senior leaders in the party is upset with BJP and is not keen on continuing in the alliance. "We are upset with the approach of BJP. Though the captain (Vijayakanth) has been appreciative of Modi's governance, an appointment we sought for our leader to meet Modi to handover the flood relief fund for Jammu and Kashmir is not yet granted," the district secretary said.
A senior MLA from northern TN said that only Vijayakanth and Premalatha had campaigned for the BJP alliance extensively during the Lok Sabha elections. "Our leaders promoted Modi in all rural areas. They covered all the constituencies for the alliance.
Though Modi honoured our leaders during his swearing in ceremony, there has been a big wedge between the two parties since then," the MLA said.
Meanwhile, DMDK has announced a protest on December 19 to condemn power tariff hike.