Chennai, Aug 23 (IANS) Congress leader Manickam Tagore on Sunday said the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) could be invited to join the INDIA bloc once it secured representation in Parliament, asserting that the Opposition alliance was essentially a coalition of parties with MPs.
Addressing a press conference in Chennai, Tagore was responding to a question on whether Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s party was part of the INDIA bloc.
“The TVK currently has no MPs. When the party wins parliamentary seats, we will ask it to join the INDIA bloc. We cannot invite a party without MPs to become part of the alliance. Once it has MPs, we will certainly consider including it,” Tagore said.
The Congress MP also recalled the political developments that followed the Tamil Nadu Assembly election, in which the TVK emerged as the largest party after securing 106 seats.
According to Tagore, Vijay’s first call after the election results was to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. He claimed that Vijay sought Gandhi’s support to form the government and assume office as Chief Minister.
“The Congress was the first party to submit a letter extending support to the TVK government. Every minister in the present government is aware of this fact. The government and its ministers initially received the support of the Congress,” he said.
Tagore claimed that the Congress intervention had prevented the BJP from engineering an alternative government in the state. Without Congress support, he alleged, Union Home Minister Amit Shah would have attempted to destabilise the TVK and install AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami as Chief Minister.
“Otherwise, Amit Shah would have finished the TVK’s political story by now. The party could have been split, and Palaniswami made Chief Minister. Everyone in the TVK understands the circumstances under which the government was formed,” he said.
Asked about Vijay’s limited public comments on national politics and alliance-related matters, Tagore said the Chief Minister preferred to speak only when required. “Let the election come first. Vijay generally speaks very little, but when the time comes for him to express his position, he will speak clearly and appropriately,” the Congress leader said.
His remarks have renewed speculation over future cooperation between the Congress and the TVK, particularly ahead of the next Lok Sabha election. However, Tagore indicated that any formal discussion on the TVK joining the INDIA bloc would depend on the party first gaining representation in Parliament.
–IANS
aal/dpb
