At the swearing-in ceremony at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Rahul Gandhi stood smiling beside hisally Vijayas the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief took oath as Chief Minister. The moment reflected a relationship that traces back to 2009, when Vijay had reportedly expressed interest in joining the Indian National Congress. According to a report by Hindustan Times, Vijay had sought only a basic membership without demanding any post or election ticket. However, Rahul Gandhi is said to have suggested that he first contest Youth Congress elections, a move that ultimately stalled his entry into the party.
Vijay had also interacted with leaders of the National Students' Union of India, including then office-bearer Hibi Eden. Congress spokesperson Ragini Nayak recently shared a photograph from that meeting, reigniting discussion around the missed political opportunity.
In hindsight, the Congress leadership’s hesitation appears significant. Had Vijay entered the party at the time, he may have eventually emerged as a Congress-backed Chief Ministerial face in Tamil Nadu. Instead, the party continued its decades-long struggle for relevance in the state, while Vijay went on to launch TVK and break the long-standing Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam dominance.
The Congress has faced similar setbacks before. After the death of YS Rajasekhara Reddy, his son YS Jagan Mohan Reddy sought the Chief Minister’s post, but the Congress leadership declined to back him. Jagan later floated his own party and rose to power, while Congress gradually lost its foothold in Andhra Pradesh.
A comparable situation unfolded in Assam with Himanta Biswa Sarma. Despite being one of the Congress’s strongest leaders in the state, Sarma’s ambitions reportedly clashed with the party leadership’s continued support for Tarun Gogoi. Sarma eventually joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and went on to become one of the BJP’s most influential regional leaders.
In Tamil Nadu, however, the Congress appears to have moved quickly to recalibrate its strategy. Although it fought the election alongside the DMK alliance, the party shifted course after the defeat of the MK Stalin-led front. Congress subsequently ended its alliance with the DMK and forged a long-term partnership with TVK, covering future local body, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha elections.
Recent developments also point to growing warmth between Rahul Gandhi and Vijay. The Congress leader has reportedly spoken to Vijay multiple times and referred to him as his “brother” - a term he had earlier used for Stalin. Political observers have also noted that Rahul Gandhi avoided sharing the stage with Stalin during parts of the campaign, a move now being viewed as a signal of his outreach to Vijay.
With an eye on the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, the new TVK-Congress alliance is now positioned as the principal challenger in Tamil Nadu, replacing the DMK-led bloc that had swept all 39 parliamentary seats in the state in 2024. While the Vijay-led government currently depends on Congress support to maintain its majority, speculation around a possible split within the AIADMK has fuelled expectations that the government could soon become less reliant on smaller allies.
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