AIADMK Says No To VCK Boss As Chief Minister In Alliance With DMK: Sources

The AIADMK has denied that there was a proposal to make VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan the chief minister if the Dravidian party manages to stitch a coalition with the DMK, said sources.

The denial follows reports that the DMK and AIADMK had been in talks with the VCK and were considering giving the top post to Thirumavalavan in exchange for his support.  

The VCK secured just two out of the total 234 seats. That's less than 1% of the total assembly strength. Live Updates

What We Know So Far

The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) is at the centre of the uncertainty over government formation in Tamil Nadu. The TVK, which emerged as the single largest party with 108 seats, currently has a total of 116 MLA-elects in its favour and needs the backing of two more to secure majority.

The VCK has two MLAs - if they agree to support Vijay, the TVK can go ahead with forming the government. The TVK is expected to make its stand clear at 4 pm today.

Read: And Then There Were 2: How VCK Has Kept Vijay, Tamil Nadu On Edge For 3 Days

Sources suggest the delay is due to the absence of one of the two VCK MLAs. It is learn that the MLA is on the way to Chennai and that VCK insists on having the signature of both its MLAs before announcing its final decision.

Vijay had also reached out to the AMMK and IUML for support, but the two parties had refused.

Can Thiruma Be Chief Minister?

Well, anything is possible in coalition politics. Any leader can become chief minister if he is a member of the said assembly and can muster a simple majority in his favour.

While Vijay was busy negotiating a coalition with smaller parties like the CPI, CPM, VCK and others, the Dravidian giants DMK and AIADMK weren't sitting idle.

Finding themselves swept away by a Vijay tsunami, the parties that held a duopoly in Tamil Nadu politics for over six decades that begun talks among themselves. Quiet interestingly so since the two parties had been arch-rivals; a partnership was hard to imagine thus far.

Sources in the AIADMK say that their talks with the DMK still continue, in a bid to stop Vijay from forming the government.

It also appears that Vijay was not the only one trying to bring VCK on its side. The Dravidians giants too had been exploring an alliance with the VCK, said sources.

This being a watershed moment for Tamil Nadu, the stakes are also high. To secure VCK chief Thirumavalavan's support, sources said, there had been talks to project him as the chief minister.

It's not clear though how such an alliance will work out since they would still fall short of majority. Together, the DMK and AIADMK have 106 seats (DMK 59 and AIADMK 47). Adding the two MLAs of VCK, the count would go up to 116. The TVK too has those many MLAs on its side, including 107 of its own legislators, five of Congress, and four from the Left parties.

The VCK Denial

VCK General Secretary D Ravikumar has denied that his party has made any demand of positins in any cabinet. In an online post, Ravikumar said, "The reports currently being circulated, claiming that the VCK is seeking various positions and making demands, are entirely contrary to the truth."

The party will inform its final decision this evening.