Congress rules out alliance with Vijay’s TVK, reaffirms ties with DMK

Girish Chodankar , Congress party’s in-charge for Tamil Nadu, on Saturday asserted that the ruling DMK remains the party’s trusted and long-standing ally, ruling out the possibility of an alliance with actor-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) for the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

Speaking to reporters in Chennai, Chodankar said the Congress was firmly committed to continuing its alliance with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). He was accompanied by Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K Selvaperunthagai and other senior party leaders.

Responding to queries on whether the Congress was exploring an alliance with the Vijay-led TVK, Chodankar dismissed the speculation, asking rhetorically whether anyone had suggested that the Congress would not ally with the DMK. “The Congress party has a long-standing relationship with the DMK. It is a trusted ally,” he said.

Recalling his meeting with Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin around a month ago, Chodankar expressed confidence that the DMK leadership would soon take firm decisions on election-related issues, including seat-sharing arrangements. He noted that a committee was constituted about six weeks ago to hold seat-sharing talks with the DMK, underscoring the Congress party’s interest in continuing the alliance with the Dravidian major.

On reports claiming that Congress leader Praveen Chakravarthy had met TVK chief Vijay and that the Congress had demanded 38 Assembly seats and three Cabinet berths if the DMK-led alliance returned to power, Chodankar declined to comment. He said the number of seats the Congress would contest would be announced shortly.

Addressing questions on power-sharing demands, Chodankar remarked that no political party would claim it did not want a share in power. “If that were the case, then we should name ourselves as an NGO,” he said.

Notably, there has been no official statement so far from DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin on the alliance talks, nor has TVK founder Vijay commented on the speculation surrounding a possible tie-up with the Congress.