‘Total disarray’: BJP’s CR Kesavan targets Congress amid row over candidate selection in Tamil Nadu | India News
New Delhi: BJP national spokesperson CR Kesavan on Saturday attacked the Congress in Tamil Nadu, alleging that the party was facing “deep divisions” after MP Jothimani publicly expressed concern over the lack of transparency in polling ahead of the 2026 assembly polls.In a post on X, Kesavan said the developments reflected a larger pattern within the party and also targeted the DMK-Congress alliance in the state.“Rahul Gandhi’s Congress is a deeply divided house and in complete disarray in Tamil Nadu. Their party MP from TN is now openly attacking the Congress leadership for lack of transparency. There is a definite pattern of this. Rahul Gandhi’s point person in Bihar elections was besieged by Congress workers for allegedly selling tickets. This is why Congress has compromised with the whole country. The opportunistic DMK-Congress alliance has collapsed, and the misrule of the model DMK government, one of the worst regimes in the history of Tamil Nadu, will be clearly rejected by the people in the upcoming elections,” the BJP leader wrote.Kesavan’s comments came after Yothimani publicly questioned the Congress party’s electoral process, alleging that decisions were taken in a “highly secretive manner” and that the welfare of the party was compromised.“Congress party has absolutely no transparency in elections. Our view that elections should be held after transparency and after extensive discussion was not accepted by the responsible leaders. Everything happened in extreme secrecy. The welfare of the Congress party was completely compromised. It is heartbreaking to see some individuals, who single-handedly withdrew from both parties. Decades of hard work of true Congress party workers like us for the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, is now being sold,” said Jothimani X. wroteHe warned that the party could face serious consequences in Tamil Nadu if the same procedure was followed during candidate selection.“No one can remain silent in the face of this dire situation without raising questions. The party is not just responsible leaders, state presidents and legislative leaders. It is the passion and labor of lakhs of workers that make the party. We can discuss this in detail after the release of the list.” If the candidate selection is done in this same selling manner, no one can save the Congress party in Tamil Nadu.“The political development comes as the DMK alliance continues to prepare for the upcoming Tamil Nadu assembly elections.The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has announced that its ‘Rising Sun’ symbol will contest around 175 seats in the state.So far, the DMK alliance has allotted seats to nine parties, including Congress (28), MDMK (4), IUML (2), MMK (2), KMDK (2), CPI (5), CPM (5), VCK (8), and DMDK (10). A total of 66 seats have been allotted to allies, of which seven are contesting on the DMK symbol.With the expected remaining allocation, the DMK will directly contest 168 seats, while the alliance candidates in seven seats will also contest under the Rising Sun symbol, taking the total to 175 seats under the DMK symbol.Tamil Nadu will go to polls in a single phase on April 23, with counting on May 4.
