New Delhi/Chennai, February 23 The deadlock over seat-sharing between the Congress and the DMK persisted on Monday, with the ruling party demanding 45 seats and the M K Stalin-led outfit reluctant to go beyond 25, sources said.
The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu began seat-sharing talks with allies on Sunday for the upcoming assembly elections in April, and Congress leader K C Venugopal met Chief Minister Stalin at his residence in Chennai.
According to sources, Venugopal briefed Stalin about his party's expectations and the constituencies it wished to contest during the approximately 45-minute meeting.
Following the meeting, AICC in-charge of Tamil Nadu Girish Chodankar and Pradesh Congress Committee chief K Selvaperunthagai met DMK's parliamentary party chief Kanimozhi on Monday.
Sources said that during the meeting, Congress leaders conveyed that the party wants to contest 45 of the 234 assembly seats.
While the DMK has been insisting on giving the Congress 25 seats, the same number as in the 2021 polls, it is yet to officially respond to the Congress' demand for 45 seats.
Congress sources said that the party's demand for 45 seats is based on a review of the 2021 election results, when it won 18 of the 25 seats it contested.
In the last election, the DMK contested 173 seats, winning 133 and losing 40, mostly to the AIADMK and the BJP.
According to party insiders, the Congress believes that at least 20 of those lost seats are winnable if allotted to it, citing a stronger local presence and better consolidation in direct contests.
The 45-seat demand is aimed at improving winnability and strengthening the alliance.
The talks between Stalin and Venugopal followed a recent meeting between DMK leader Kanimozhi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Delhi over seat sharing.
Also, the meetings happened against the backdrop of demands by a section of state Congress leaders seeking a share in power and CM Stalin ruling it out, saying that such an arrangement would not suit Tamil Nadu.
The DMK leads the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) in Tamil Nadu and its constituents include the Congress, the DMDK, Left parties and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi.