Congress, DMK seal deal on seat-sharing in Tamil Nadu

NEW DELHI: The Congress and the DMK have reached a deal on seat-sharing for the upcoming assembly polls in Tamil Nadu, which had threatened to break the alliance between the two parties.

According to sources, Congress will get the 63 seats it had wanted. The DMK had earlier walked out after refusing to give in to the Congress demand.

The compromise formula was worked out after hectic rounds of parleys among leaders from both sides. An announcement on this will be made in a short while.

The Congress had earlier today said its hopes were alive for a last- minute resolution.

"They (DMK) are our ally... It is not over... We are definitely hopeful," a senior Congress leader and Union minister said when asked whether the alliance with DMK has come to an end.

The remark came after two rounds of talks DMK leader Dayanidhi Maran had with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee after failure to reach a breakthrough during a meeting with Congress President Sonia Gandhi last night.

The minister, who declined to be identified, dismissed suggestions that Congress was looking at doing business with AIADMK.