Puducherry election 2026: Upset VCK exits DMK-Congress alliance, decides to contest alone

Upset over the allocation of just one Assembly seat in Puducherry, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) founder Thol. Thirumavalavan on Tuesday (March 24, 2026) announced that the party will contest alone in the Union Territory (UT). It will field candidates in three constituencies — Ossudu, Nettappakkam, and Uzhavarkarai.

Assembly Elections updates on March 24, 2026

Mr. Thirumavalavan, in a statement, said the party will extend support to the “secular” Congress-DMK alliance in the remaining 27 constituencies.

The unexpected announcement comes at a time when the VCK had sought around three seats in Puducherry and is seeking “double digit” number of Assembly seats and a Rajya Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu.

Mr. Thirumavalavan pointed out the seat-sharing arrangement between the DMK and the Congress was finalised after prolonged delays and closer to the last date of filing of nomination for the Puducherry Assembly elections.

“The Congress, which is contesting in a majority of constituencies in the alliance, did not come forward to allocate seats to other partners. From the DMK side, there was an offer to allocate one constituency to the VCK. However, even after the nomination filing process ended, it has still not been confirmed which constituency that would be. Moreover, in all the constituencies where VCK candidates have filed nominations, the Congress party has also fielded candidates. As a result, our party functionaries have been subjected to unnecessary mental stress,” he said.

He pointed out the VCK had been part of Secular Progressive Alliance in Puducherry for several years.

“In the 2001 elections, we contested in two constituencies under the DMK-led alliance. In the 2021 elections, the Congress party allocated only the Uzhavarkarai general constituency to us. At that time, to avoid any strain within the alliance, we accepted it and contested. However, we did not receive adequate cooperation from the alliance partners. Nevertheless, we secured over 6,000 votes,” he said.