Marathon meetings between the Tamil Nadu Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) could be indicative of a new political normal in the state, in the post-Karunanidhi era. The Congress and DMK have been in a huddle for days now, in an attempt to finalise the contours of a pre-poll alliance in time for Assembly elections due in April.

Sources who attended the meeting told CNBC-TV18 that the principal disagreement between both parties is over how many seats the Congress must be allotted.

Congress wants 27 seats, DMK willing to part with 24

The Congress' latest demand is for 27 seats, while the DMK is willing to part with only 24. Initially, the Congress sounded off its demand for 35 out of 234 seats in the DMK-led alliance.

However, sources said that the Dravidan bulwark was unwilling to part with more than 18 constituencies for the Congress.

While the Grand Old Party of India is said to have then scaled down its demand to 27 seats, the DMK has held firm to its offer of 24, even after several rounds of discussions and deliberations. It is here that the stalemate continues.

"It is important that secular forces consolidate to win elections, and we hope the DMK will eventually see reason and give us the seats that we required as part of the alliance," said Congress leader Veerappa Moily.

DMK's new hard stance with allies

The DMK's unwillingness to bow to the Congress' demands comes even as the present party leadership under MK Stalin has chosen to adopt a hard stance when dealing with allies.

"Stalin firmly believes that the DMK can and must draw strength from the simple fact it is at present the strongest party in Tamil Nadu," said a DMK leader on condition of anonymity. "That process can only happen if our party maximizes the number of seats we contest in; it is a decision taken in the interest of the alliance and winning the elections," the leader added.

The DMK, party sources said, is keen on contesting close to 190 seats in a 234-member strong assembly. That will only be possible if the company rations out its seat-allocation to the Congress, which has commanded a ripe share of seats. The call is said to have come from Stalin himself, on the advice of poll strategist Prashant Kishor.

The DMK and Congress have a decades-long history of being allies in both General and Assembly elections. In the 2016 Assembly polls, where the Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK scripted a historic win despite the anti-incumbency factor, the DMK had given the Congress 41 seats and the latter managed to win merely eight. In the 2011 polls, the DMK allotted the Congress a record 63 seats, wherein just five of the candidates emerged victorious.

During seat-sharing discussions, the DMK allotted 11 seats to its regional alliance partners — three to the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), two seats to the Manitheniya Makkal Katchi (MMK) and six seats to the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK).

The DMK has also allotted six seats to the Communist Party of India (CPI), which is part of the alliance.

(Edited by : Jerome)