Tamil Nadu stares at coalition government; Rahul Gandhi reaches out to Vijay

CHENNAI: Having won 107 seats in Tamil Nadu assembly election, TVK needs support of 11 more MLAs to form the govt. While a coalition govt seems certain, how TVK would cobble it together remains a game of possibilities and challenges.

TVK’s newly elected MLAs will be in Chennai on Tuesday to elect Vijay as the leader of the legislature party.



A congratulatory call from Rahul Gandhi to TVK president C Joseph Vijay on Monday triggered reports of the possibility of Congress jumping ship. TVK sources, meanwhile, said they are exploring multiple options that include getting support from allies of both DMK and AIADMK.

Rahul called TVK’s victory “spectacular result” that reflected the rising voice of youth “which cannot and will not be ignored”. DMK sources said Rahul spoke to chief minister M K Stalin and assured him of support. Congress camp said AICC member Girish Chodankar, who has been a votary of power-sharing, has submitted a note to the party high command on the emerging situation in TN.

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Congress won five seats, while other DMK allies VCK, CPI, CPM and IUML won two each.

Congress leaders in Delhi told TOI that if TVK offers a power-sharing arrangement, the party may consider it. Congress won five constituencies, while allies like VCK, CPI, CPM and IUML secured two seats each.

CPI and CPM leaders said they had not received any call from TVK, and any decision would be taken by their respective state committees if they get feelers. VCK, the third recognized party in the DMK alliance led by Thol Thirumavalavan, is watching the developments cautiously.

AIADMK is also assessing its options. Leaders close to Edappadi K Palaniswami said that Vijay would struggle to run a stable govt with support only from DMK allies and would need a more secure arrangement that could function “without fear of BJP pressure.” “BJP concurrence is a must for any AIADMK tie-up with the actor,” said a leader. There is also speculation within a section of the BJP that the party could back Vijay by engineering a split in the AIADMK. The BJP won just one seat, down from four in the previous election.

Congress MP Manickam Tagore said the state again rejected the NDA and it was the duty of the secular forces to stop any manipulation of the verdict. “Secular forces must come together to protect Tamil Nadu from RSS proxies and from hate politics. Hope all egos are left behind to protect Tamil Nadu,” he posted.