PMK changed strategy as people didn’t vote for it: Anbumani Ramadoss

Chennai, Feb 25 (IANS) PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss on Monday said his party, which has tied-up with Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and state assembly bypolls, had to change its electoral strategy as the people did not support it in the previous four elections.

The former Union Minister said that the PMK would continue to press for its demands with the AIADMK. Speaking to reporters here, Ramadoss said that DMK President M.K. Stalin may be attacking the PMK now as it had entered into electoral alliance with the AIADMK and not his party.

He said his party fought the 2016 assembly elections alone, promising several schemes but not even a single candidate was elected, while in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the party contested eight seats in Tamil Nadu but it was only Ramadoss himself who had won.

Ramadoss said there was a need for the party to change its electoral strategy this time and it was in talks with both the AIAMDK and the DMK for an electoral alliance.

Considering the interests of Tamil Nadu, the party signed up with AIADMK laying down 10 conditions and will continue to press for their fulfilment, he said. As a part of the alliance deal with AIADMK, the PMK got seven Lok Sabha seats to contest and was promised one Rajya Sabha seat.

Not refuting that the PMK had criticised the AIADMK government earlier, Ramadoss said his party is against corruption.

Ramadoss, who faced a tough time in explaining the tie-up with AIADMK after announcing that PMK will not align with the two Dravidian parties (AIADMK and DMK) and lost his cool sometimes, also cited examples of other parties who were earlier staunch rivals but have entered into electoral pacts now.

–IANS
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