New Delhi [India], February 16 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shazia Ilmi said that the Congress party lacks independent support in Tamil Nadu and can only secure victories with backing from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), ahead of the state assembly elections.

Ilmi told ANI,'The DMK is refusing to ally with the Congress party in the Tamil Nadu elections. This reflects the respect the Congress party has within the alliance.The Congress party has no support in Tamil Nadu and the leaders of the Congress party only win elections with the support of DMK.'

Her remarks come amid ongoing seat-sharing discussions between the Congress and the DMK ahead of the upcoming polls. The two parties are key constituents of the opposition INDIA bloc and have maintained a long-standing political alliance in Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K Selvaperunthagai said on Friday that Alliance talks between the Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) are set to begin on February 22, asserting that the INDIA bloc remains united despite the BJP's attempts to 'split the vote bank' by pulling someone out of the alliance.

Speaking to reporters in Chennai, Selvaperunthagai said negotiations with the DMK were progressing smoothly ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.'

Selvaperunthagai told reporters, 'The election process is going very, very smoothly. Negotiations are ongoing, and we are going to start on February 22. Nothing the BJP is thinking will happen. The BJP wants to pull someone out of the INDIA alliance to split the vote bank, but it will not happen. We are intact with the alliance.'

The 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly will go to the polls in the first half of 2026. In 2021, the DMK-Congress alliance won 151 in the 2021 elections. (ANI)

The 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly is set to go to the polls in the first half of 2026. In the 2021 elections, the DMK-Congress alliance won 151 seats. (ANI)