Moopanar, who declined to meet the waiting newsmen at the airport, however indicated that the TMC has arrived at a decision regarding the role it would be expected to play in a polarised political situation at the all India level and in the Tamil Nadu environment where the AIADMK, facing serious charges of corruption, is a factor to be taken care of.

The TMC leader, who was accompanied by former Union ministers S R Balasubramaniam and Jayanthi Natarajan, had extensive discussions in the last two days with Sonia, CPM general secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet and CPI leader A B Bardhan.

The TMC leaders were understood to have discussed with the Congress and the Left parties all the permutations andcombinations in Tamil Nadu, including a front led by the Congress in which the TMC, CPI, CPM would be the leading allies. The AICC high command in particular was apprised of the emerging equations which will find electoral acceptability even if the AIADMK will be out of the reckoning.

Contrary to the impression that the TMC would wait until Sonia's emissaries Manmohan Singh and A K Antony meet with AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalitha again to resume their dialogue, the broad contours of TMC's electoral strategy, it is learnt, would be known soon.

Moopanar and other TMC leaders, including former Union finance minister P Chidambaram, went to New Delhi after arriving at a broad consensus on the stance the party would adopt at the hustings. The overwhelming opinion of the party leaders and functionaries seemed to be against joining hands with the AIADMK under any circumstance directly or indirectly.