Congress workers want party to lead the alliance with DMK

At a meeting convened by representatives of the All India Congress Committee on Thursday, functionaries belonging to the Puducherry Congress Committee categorically stated that the party should not pl

At a meeting convened by representatives of the All India Congress Committee on Thursday, functionaries belonging to the Puducherry Congress Committee categorically stated that the party should not play second fiddle to the DMK in the Union Territory.

The PCC functionaries wanted the AICC to take a stern stand on the alliance with the DMK for the local body polls, a PCC leader who took part in the meeting told The Hindu.

The AICC delegation comprised Praveen Chakravarty, head of the party’s Data Analytics Department, Meenakshi Natarajan, former Member of Parliament, and Jothimani, Karur MP. “We have told the AICC delegation that if the party is in an alliance with the DMK, we should have a respectable position. The party should be leading the alliance, and should not yield to the demands of the Dravidian party on certain municipalities and wards,” the functionary said. The party functionaries had expressed their desire to keep the Puducherry Municipality under its fold, he said. Several members raised concerns about the Congress yielding to pressure from the DMK like it did during the seat-sharing talks for the Assembly polls. “We have lost many seats because those traditionally held by the party were snatched away from us. We should continue the alliance on respectable terms. Otherwise, we should contest the civic polls alone,” a functionary said.