BJP, AIADMK announce tie-up for 2019 general elections

A day after sealing the deal with Shiv Sena, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam today announced an alliance in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. BJP will contest in 5 seats, whereas its alliance partner AIADMK in 27 seats.

“We will contest the elections under the leadership of Chief Minister E Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Pannerselvam,” Union minister Piyush Goyal said. He also mentioned that the BJP will support AIADMK in the bye-elections on 21 Assembly seats.

Earlier today, the ruling AIADMK announced a poll alliance with the Pattali Makkal Katchi. AIADMK has allotted 7 seats to Pattali Makkal Katchi.


The alliance will contest the Tamil Nadu elections under the leadership of the AIADMK and the national elections in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said Goyal.

In 2014, the AIADMK swept Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu, winning as many as 37 seats.The BJP and NDA ally PMK won 1 seat apiece.

Tamil Nadu will send 39 MPs to Parliament in this year's general election -- a relatively large contingent compared to many other states.

The AIADMK faces the difficult task of thwarting a challenge from the main opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party, which is part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

AIADMK, as well as its rival DMK, were working hard to woo the PMK since the past few weeks in a bid to set up a diverse caste coalition for the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and one in Puducherry.