CPM joins DMK alliance in TN

DMK's efforts to cobble up a rainbow coalition against the BJP in Tamil Nadu yielded results on Tuesday when the CPM announced it would enter into an alliance with the regional party for the 2019 general elections.

CPM is the latest party to announce joining the DMK-led front to face the Lok Sabha polls due in 2019 summer.

CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury made the announcement after meeting DMK president M K Stalin here on Tuesday evening. The Congress, MDMK and CPI are already a part of the alliance.

"We decided today that in Tamil Nadu, we will be with the DMK in the forthcoming elections. We are together on the issue of saving the unity, integrity and harmony of the people of India and the country’s constitutional institutions," the CPM leader told reporters after the meeting.

The DMK is trying to build a rainbow coalition to repeat the 2004 performance — the Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the DMK won all 40 seats, including 1 in Puducherry.

The meeting was significant as it came within four days of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's meeting with Stalin to discuss an anti-BJP front.

The CPM and DMK will be fighting elections together after a gap of almost 12 years — they contested the 2006 Assembly elections as a combine and both parties parted ways in 2008 following the Left party walking away from the UPA over the Indo-US nuclear deal.

Yechury said the CPM will have alliances at the state-level at first, and national-level alliances, if any, will be decided at a later stage.

During the meeting, sources told DH, both Yechury and Stalin agreed that all anti-BJP parties who believe in pluralism should come together to take on the Narendra Modi government and defeat it at the hustings.

During his interaction with the media, Yechury said India has to be saved from the current onslaught and it is essential to protect the unity and integrity of the country.

Stalin tweeted: "Had a good meeting with @SitaramYechury. We discussed in detail about the alliance in order to defeat the BJP government at the Centre in the 2019 General Elections."

Though seat-sharing was not discussed on Tuesday, sources said since the CPM had contested two Lok Sabha seats in the 2004 elections, it would like the same number this time as well.

"We will formally convey our demand when the talks take place," a senior leader said.