VCKs call for alliance fails to cut ice

CHENNAI: A day after Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) chief Thol Thirumavalavan urged parties ditched by the AIADMK and DMK to form an alliance of their own, the party found no takers. The jettisoned allies instead seemed to be carrying on with preparations for the coming local body polls.Thirumavalavan had issued an open invitation to parties like the PMK, MDMK, CPI(M), CPI, a few Muslim outfits and other small parties to form an alliance. He had added that VCK was holding informal talks with a number of them.However, the response, if any, was muted, with most parties unsure of where they would stand with their larger allies after the local body elections.“I cannot comment on it right now. We will speak about it after the State Committee discusses the matter on Monday,” said CPI(M) State secretary G Ramakrishnan, admitting that the VCK had indeed established contact. But in what could be an indication of things to come, the CPI(M) released a second list of candidates for the polls on Sunday evening.CPI State secretary D Pandian, on the other hand, was more candid. “No humans have contacted us so far about this,” he declared cryptically. “We are currently in the process of holding talks with parties close to us. It would be improper to say any more,” he told Express. An hour later, CPI(M) and CPI leaders sat in discussion at the CPI office.A similar scenario unfolded with the smaller parties. Most of them said they had not been approached formally by the VCK and that time was short. “We have not been approached. If we are, we will deal with it when it happens. Right now, we have to focus on our candidates and their nominations,” said Puthiya Tamilagam chief K Krishnaswamy.