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Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday said that the seating arrangements in Parliament would be made as per the request of DMK MP Kanimozhi, who had written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking separate seating from Congress after a split in the alliance in Tamil Nadu.
Speaking to ANI, Rijiju said, "MP Kanimozhi and others have made a demand. Parliament is not in session right now; however, we will arrange seating as per their request." The statement came after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Friday officially requested separate seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha, moving away from its long-time ally, Congress. The request, submitted by DMK parliamentary leader Kanimozhi to Speaker Om Birla, cites "changed political circumstances" following the explosive fallout from the Tamil Nadu Assembly election results. The decades-old alliance between the DMK and Congress, which has stood largely firm since 2004, disintegrated over the last 48 hours. The primary catalyst was the Congress party's decision to extend support to actor-turned-politician Vijay and his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), to form the government in Tamil Nadu. TVK, which won 108 seats, has sought support from several smaller camps to touch the magical number of 118 seats in the 234-seat Assembly. Congress, with five seats, and the CPI and CPI(M), VCK and IUML, which have two seats each, had extended their support to the Vijay-led TVK. Despite contesting the state elections as part of the DMK-led coalition, Congress shifted its allegiance to TVK after Vijay emerged as a kingmaker. With the DMK (22 MPs) being the fourth-largest constituent of the opposition, their move to sit apart is a massive optics blow to the national INDIA bloc. (ANI)
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