Congress backs Vijay's TVK in Tamil Nadu, will AIADMK join course?

Tamil Nadu politics latest news | The Tamil Nadu Congress has decided to ditch its long-time ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and support Thalapathy Vijay and his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in forming the government. The decision was taken at an urgent late-night meeting of the party's Political Affairs Committee, convened on Zoom by AICC in-charge for Tamil Nadu Affairs Girish Chodankar, where senior members backed the move, news agency PTI reported, citing sources.

This came after the grand old party claimed that Vijay sought their support for government formation and that the party leadership had asked the state unit to take a final call, keeping in view the state's sentiments. Top Congress leaders met at party chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence on Tuesday evening, with Rahul Gandhi and Chodankar among those present, to discuss the post-election situation.

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Addressing the media after the meeting, Congress general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal said, "TVK President Thiru Vijay has requested the Indian National Congress for support to form a Government in Tamil Nadu." He added that the Congress is crystal clear that the mandate in Tamil Nadu is for "a secular government that is committed to protecting the Constitution in letter and spirit. The INC is determined not to have the BJP and its proxies run the Government of Tamil Nadu in any manner."

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Vijay's TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, falling short of the halfway mark. The report from New Delhi said he needs the support of 10 MLAs to form a government with a simple majority. Congress won five seats, PMK four, CPI and CPI-M two each, DMK 59 and AIADMK 47. The BJP, DMDK and AMMK won one seat each, while the VCK won two. Congress fought the election in alliance with the DMK, while the BJP was allied with the AIADMK.

Not just this, NDA ally All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) is also considering extending support to Vijay. AIADMK MLA-elect Leemarose Martin said that the party's general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is in talks to support Vijay for a stable government.

Leemarose, wife of Santiago Martin, won from Lalgudi, while her son-in-law, Aadhav Arjuna of TVK, won from Villivakkam. The Chennai report said TVK, launched in 2024, secured 108 seats in its maiden Assembly poll and required the support of an additional 12 members, with talks underway with several parties, including the Congress.

With the Congress state unit now backing Vijay, and parallel claims of AIADMK talks, government formation efforts in Tamil Nadu have moved to the centre of the post-election developments.