Chennai: Ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal met Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin at his residence in Chennai on Sunday. The meeting took place before the final round of seat-sharing talks among parties in the ruling DMK-led alliance.
Tamil Nadu Congress Screening Committee chairman T S Singh Deo was also present during the discussions. The meeting is seen as part of efforts to iron out differences and arrive at a consensus on seat distribution for the 2026 Assembly elections.
Tamil Nadu Congress president Selva Perunthagai said the party is fully prepared to hold discussions with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on a seat-sharing formula. He reiterated that the Congress remains committed to the DMK-led alliance for the upcoming polls.
Meanwhile, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) president K M Kader Mohideen met DMK representatives to press the party’s demand for five Assembly seats. The DMK has constituted a committee to hold structured talks with all alliance partners regarding seat-sharing arrangements.
Sources said discussions with Manithaneya Makkal Katchi and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) are scheduled for Monday, while talks with the Communist parties will take place on February 26.
There are indications of internal differences within the Congress over alliance preferences, with one section favoring continuation with the DMK, while another exploring options with Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), led by actor-turned-politician Vijay. Venugopal, who arrived in Chennai on February 17, sought to dispel speculation, stating that the Congress–DMK alliance remains strong and that individual opinions do not reflect the party’s official stand.
The meeting between Stalin and Venugopal began at around 8:35 p.m. and lasted approximately 45 minutes. A separate closed-door discussion involving Stalin, Venugopal, and DMK MP Kanimozhi was also held, reportedly focusing on Congress’s preferred constituencies.
According to sources, once formal talks with the DMK seat-sharing committee begin in the coming days, the number of seats to be allotted to the Congress will be finalized. With Vijay’s TVK entering the political fray, the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections are expected to witness a three-cornered contest.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, the DMK won 133 seats, while the Congress secured 18 seats. The DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) won a total of 159 seats, whereas the NDA won 75 seats. The AIADMK emerged as the largest party in its alliance, winning 66 seats.