Chennai: The ruling AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) is to contest 33 seats from Tamil Nadu in the coming Lok Sabha polls, leaving six seats in the State and the lone seat in Pondicherry to the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party).

An agreement to this effect was reached in the talks between the poll panels of the AIADMK and the BJP in Chennai this morning (Feb 18, 2004).

The Pudukottai seat, held by Union Minister S Thirunavukkarasar, has not been allotted to the BJP.

The BJP had been allotted Chennai (north), Chidambaram (SC), Dharmapuri, Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Nagercoil and Pondicherry, AIADMK leader Jayalalithaa announced after the talks.

The BJP had won Nagercoil, Nilgiris and Coimbatore seats in the last Lok Sabha polls.

C P Radhakrishnan, BJP's Tamil Nadu unit's president, told reporters after the agreement was reached that he was fully satisfied with the agreement. He said AIADMK would contest 33 seats.

Asked about the non-allotment of Pudukottai, he said in the alliance, every party had to adopt give and take approach. The party high command would announce the candidates, he said.

The AIADMK'S decision to contest 33 seats reflected the party leader Jayalalithaa's oft- repeated remarks that the party would contest maximum number of seats and win so that it could play a major role in the national politics in the post-poll scenario.