Tamil Nadu Congress Leaders Meet CM Vijay Amid Rising Political Tensions

Tamil Nadu Congress leaders met Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay at the Secretariat in Chennai on Monday, a meeting that comes amid a row over the party’s stance on the 2029 prime‑ministerial candidate and the recent resignation threat by two Congress ministers. The top brass, including state president B Manickam Tagore and Member of Parliament Praveen Chakravarthy, spoke with Vijay for roughly twenty minutes, but details of the discussion were not disclosed.

The meeting follows comments by Congress minister S Rajesh Kumar and his colleague P Viswanathan, who said they would resign from their cabinet posts if the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) did not support Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as the party’s candidate for the next general election. Rajesh Kumar, the tourism minister and MLA from Killiyoor, made the statement on August 29 in Kanniyakumari, stressing that “political parties may have different opinions, but Rahul Gandhi would be the only prime ministerial candidate for the Congress.”

The two ministers, Rajesh Kumar and higher‑education minister P Viswanathan, are the only Congress members in the cabinet led by Vijay, who took office after the April 23 Assembly elections were announced on May 4. The Congress, which won five seats under the DMK‑led Secular Progressive Alliance, broke ties with the DMK and formed an alliance with TVK. The new coalition requires 118 seats to command a majority in the 234‑member Tamil Nadu legislature.

Tensions began when TVK members began projecting Vijay as the next prime minister. Social welfare and women empowerment minister K Jagadeshwari declared at an event in Madurai that “our CM will be the next PM,” while human resources and management minister D Sarath Kumar told the Assembly that “our leader, who is in our hearts and as the chief minister at the Fort, is our tomorrow’s Prime Minister for Bharat.” These remarks ran counter to the Congress’s insistence that Rahul Gandhi remain the party’s national candidate.

In response, Congress leaders have reiterated their position. DMK leader and spokesperson TKS Elangovan welcomed the Congress stance, questioning TVK’s rationale for promoting Vijay. “Congress is a major political party in the country and has ruled the nation for years. How can TVK want to project Vijay as the Prime Ministerial candidate? What the Congress leadership says is right,” Elangovan said.

Former minister and senior Congress leader S Thirunavukkarasu dismissed the notion of a dispute, saying the relationship between TVK and Congress is “only love.” He added that the ministers had only threatened resignation and had not yet acted.

Vijay’s swearing‑in on May 10 was attended by Rahul Gandhi and nine of his ministers, underscoring the close ties between the parties. TVK’s coalition also includes Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Indian Union Muslim League, each with two Assembly seats and ministerial portfolios, as well as outside support from the Communist Party of India and the CPI (Marxist), who won two seats each.

The Hindustan Times reached out to TVK for a comment on the dispute but received no response. The Congress, TVK, and DMK continue to navigate the complex alliance dynamics as the Tamil Nadu government prepares for the next phase of state and national politics.

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