The Congress on Tuesday responded to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)’s attack on Rahul Gandhi for his alliance with the ruling Tamil Nadu Vetri Kazhagam (TVK), asking the main opposition party in Tamil Nadu to introspect and determine the reasons for its defeat in the Assembly elections.
S Rajesh Kumar and P Viswanathan, Congress ministers in the TVK-led government, asserted that it is their duty to stand by TVK, which remains steadfast on its secular ideology. “The DMK is crossing all limits and hurling abuses at Congress and its leaders. He is criticizing us, claiming that Congress won [five seats in the 234-member House] It is only because of the DMK and yet they supported TVK,” Kumar and Viswanathan said in a statement.
The statement came a day after DMK mouthpiece Murasoli took a jibe at Gandhi, asking if it was shameful for him to use all kinds of “underhanded tactics” to prevent the Inclusive Indian National Development Alliance (INDIA) bloc from coming to power in the states, and then enlist their support for the Lok Sabha elections.
Murasoli accused the Congress of stabbing the KDP in the back with Gandhi’s blessings and mocked him for “giving a lecture on unity” at the India bloc meeting this month.
Kumar and Viswanathan said that TVK formed the government with the Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, Indian Muslim League (IUML), which contested the elections as part of the DMK-led Progressive Secular Alliance. “This demonstrates the firm stand of Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, on principles like democracy, social justice, secularism and state rights.”
The two ministers said that the KDP could not win a single election without an alliance, but it never shared power with its allies. “In 2006, the KDP did not even reach the 100-seat mark. It formed the government only thanks to the Congress. However, the KDP did not absorb the Congress in the cabinet,” he said.
The two pointed out that TVK won 108 seats but gave two portfolios to the Congress, one each to the VCK and IUML, which each have two MPs. “If both Communist Parties had wanted to join the government, each would have been given one ministerial portfolio.”
Congress leaders said they support TVK to prevent the BJP from trying to rule Tamil Nadu indirectly. “Due to this action, the DMK criticized the Congress and Rahul Gandhi.”
The two asked the DMK to state the reasons for its defeat instead of criticizing the Congress. “First, find out why minority communities and Scheduled Caste communities do not vote for the DMK. Instead of doing so, if you continue to blame the alliance parties and make vulgar criticisms, a situation will arise where the DMK can never return to power,” he said.
The Congress asked the DMK to accept the rule of the people and act as a responsible party. “Otherwise, in the future, they will even lose their opposition status. Those who forget their earthly reality in politics and are arrogant will never be able to escape the punishment imposed on them by the people.”
DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai responded to the statement, saying it was ironic for the Congress to lecture on how to do the duty of an opposition party. “…we were doing [that] Very well over the last 12 years at the national level.
Saravanan described the Congress leaders as a “bunch of traitors” and said they had no moral right to question the DMK. “…Let them not talk about weakening the unity of the opposition, which was the only trait of Rahul Gandhi.”
Actor-turned-politician Vijay’s newly formed party, TVK, has emerged as the single largest party in Tamil Nadu with 108 seats, short of the majority mark of 118 seats in the 234-member Assembly. This was the most impressive debut in Tamil Nadu since M. G. Ramachandran’s in 1977. Vijay became the first non-DMK and non-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief minister since the formation of Tamil Nadu in 1967.
