Vijay's Tamil Nadu stunner exposes cracks in INDIA bloc: Congress, DMK trade barbs

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like Fissures have become visible in the Congress-DMK alliance over support for actor-turned-politician Vijay, with the grand old party formally announcing its backing for TVK to form the new government in Tamil Nadu. Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay pays tribute to the party's ideological leaders ahead of the party meeting, at party headquarters, in Chennai. (PTI)Vijay’s stunning performance in the recent Tamil Nadu assembly elections 2026 has seemingly thrown a wrench into the alliance between the two parties, with DMK going so far as to call Congress “a backstabber”. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram has seemingly responded to the charge, clarifying on Wednesday that the party was backing a “secular change” in Tamil Nadu, as the people of the state had voted for it. Chidambaram confirmed the decision was made unanimously across party forums to help the TVK bridge the gap to a majority and ensure a stable, secular administration. "The Congress party has decided to support a government headed by the TVK…TVK has got 108 seats. The people of Tamil Nadu want a formation to be headed by the TVK. It's now incumbent upon the TVK to put together a workable majority, and they have reached out to the Congress party formally. It has been discussed in all appropriate forums of the party, and unanimously, the Congress party has decided to support a government headed by the TVK because we believe that the people of Tamil Nadu want a change, but they also want a change which is headed by the TVK, but is also a secular formation. I think the people of Tamil Nadu are very clear that they want a secular formation. So we are only aiding and assisting the TVK to put together a secular and stable government in Tamil Nadu," Karti Chidambaram told ANI. DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai had earlier questioned the TVK-Congress tie-up, hinting that Vijay’s outfit is “close to the BJP”. "TVK has never spoken a single word against the BJP or Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In fact, today Vijay's first thanks is not to the people of the state who elected him, not to his constituents who elected him, not to his members who worked for him to get him elected. His first thanks is to PM Modi. And Rahul Gandhi wants to support this kind of person?" Saravanan said, citing Vijay's X post thanking PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi for their wishes on his poll victory. "When we speak of an alliance, the INDIA alliance, it is an alliance based on ideology,” he added. Later, speaking to ANI, Saravanan wished Vijay good luck, but doubled down on his jab at the Congress. "We wish good luck to Vihay when he takes the oath on 7th May. Congress has offered its support to the TVK, and that is why we called it backstabbing... The Congress has decided to flip sides and support the TVK, and the reasons cited by them are not convincing. They say they want to keep the BJP and the RSS at bay, and that is why this call should be made... This is a full-hearted decision by the Congress, which is likely to send ripples across the country in the sense that there are other alliance partners. If Congress is going to be so untrustworthy, just within a day of the results, they are openly going against the mandate. What impact will it create in the minds of Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav, Uddhav Thackeray and all the others? We have never failed the Congress," he said. Congress on Wednesday agreed to back Vijay to form a government in Tamil Nadu, but put forth a condition. The party said that it is ready to support Vijay, but the backing would be “conditional upon the TVK keeping out from this alliance any communal forces that do not believe in the Constitution of India”. In a letter, Congress said that Vijay formally requested the Grand Old Party to extend support for forming a government in the state. “The people of Tamil Nadu, especially the youth, have delivered a very clear, strong and overwhelming verdict for a secular, progressive and welfarist government that believes in constitutional principles. They have chosen the Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) led by Mr Vijay to form the next government,” Congress said in the letter. It added that it was Congress's “constitutional duty” to respect people's mandate in the state. “The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee and the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) has decided to extend its full support to the TVK to form the government,” it said. Shivam Pratap Singh is a digital journalist who works as a Deputy Chief Content Producer with Hindustan Times. Having previously worked with various platforms covering national, international as well as sports events, he blends in various topics to easy to read news pieces for the benefit of the reader. Shivam holds a Master's degree in International Relations from Jamia Millia Islamia, bringing in a unique perspective for whatever is happening around the world. An avid reader, he can be seen immersed in books and book shops while not working. Shivam treats every topic almost equally but loves to right about foreign affairs and politics of India. He has over half-a-decade of experience in digital journalism though his career started in print.Read More