‘TVK may struggle to fulfil promises’: MK Stalin after Vijay’s massive win

DMK president and outgoing Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin on Wednesday told TOI that his party would wait and watch after TVK leader C. Joseph Vijay moved towards forming the government, adding that the DMK would not “disturb” the new administration for six months.

In a post-election statement after the Tamil Nadu results, Stalin indicated that the DMK does not want a constitutional crisis or another election anytime soon. Speaking about the transition of power, he said the incoming government should continue key welfare schemes launched during the DMK regime and also try to fulfil the promises made in the TVK election manifesto.

“The new government should continue the free breakfast scheme for school children,” Stalin said, referring to one of the flagship welfare programmes introduced by his administration. He also stressed the importance of continuing the ‘Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thogai’ scheme, under which eligible women heads of households receive Rs 1,000 every month.

What did Stalin say about TVK’s poll promises?

Reacting to TVK’s promise of providing Rs 2,500 monthly assistance to women, Stalin said implementing such a scheme would be difficult. “Give them at least Rs 1,000 as we did,” he remarked.

The DMK chief also questioned whether TVK would be able to fulfil all of its major election promises, including the assurance of six free LPG cylinders annually for ration card holders.

“In this election too, we promised only those things we could deliver,” Stalin said, while defending the DMK’s governance record. He claimed that his party fulfilled nearly 90% of the promises made in its 2021 election manifesto.

However, Stalin admitted that certain commitments, including the promise to scrap NEET, could not be implemented because the issue remained under the Centre’s control.

“I don’t think TVK will be able to fulfil its promises. If they do, we will be happy,” he added.

The TVK emerged as the single-largest party in the 234-member Assembly with 108 seats in its maiden electoral contest, falling short of the majority mark of 118. The Congress won five seats and announced it would not merely support the government from outside but also join the administration.

Why did Congress break ties with DMK?

The Congress party’s decision to sever ties with the DMK marks one of the biggest political shifts in Tamil Nadu politics in recent years. The alliance between the two parties dated back decades and played a major role in several Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.

After meeting Vijay at the TVK headquarters in Panaiyur, AICC Tamil Nadu in-charge Girish Chodankar said the Congress respected the people’s mandate and would share responsibility in governance.

“For us the people's mandate is supreme. We respect people's mandate,” Chodankar said while confirming the party’s support to TVK.

The Congress also laid down a condition for the alliance, stating that “communal forces” should be kept away from the coalition. The party said the TVK-Congress alliance would work towards reviving the “glory days” associated with K. Kamaraj while upholding the ideals of Periyar EVR and BR Ambedkar.

Congress leaders, including TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai and legislative party leader S Rajesh Kumar, handed over a formal support letter to Vijay during the meeting.

The DMK described the Congress move as “backstabbing,” highlighting the end of one of Tamil Nadu’s oldest political alliances.

Congress MP Jothimani defended the decision, saying alliance changes were a normal part of politics. She pointed out that the DMK itself had walked away from Congress ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Jothimani also criticised delays in inviting Vijay to form the government and accused the BJP of attempting to influence developments through the Governor’s office. She said the Governor should immediately invite Vijay to stake claim.

According to Election Commission data, the DMK won 59 seats, while the AIADMK secured 47. Its allies PMK won four seats, while the BJP and AMMK managed one seat each.