CHENNAI, Jan 2: In the absence of a formal State-wide launch of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led Front, the seat sharing exercise for the Lok Sabha elections has not yet taken off. One of the Front constituents, the Janata Dal has, however, crossed the preliminary stage of identifying the constituencies where it is believed to be strong.The Dal has considerable political influence in as many as 16 constituencies in Tamil Nadu, State Dal president G A Vadivelu told media persons on Friday at the end of the Parliamentary Board meeting, held against the backdrop of the feed back from the lower rungs of the party in the State.
The task before the party leadership, he said, is to reduce the number of constituencies the party is interested in to seven before holding talks with the core leadership of the DMK-led Front. Even at that stage, the demand of the party would be subject to negotiations, he added.
The Dal leader sought to play down the impact of the Sonia factor in Tamil Nadu politics saying Sonia's
entry in the political arena would matter very little as the influence of the Congress has been considerably weakened in the State. The State electorate would not fall into the trap being set by the BJP either, given the State's tradition of communal harmony, he pointed out.
The Front's political platform will be built around the tenets of social justice and anti-communalism, he said.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
