DMK-Cong-secular parties alliance intact, says EVKS Elangovan

Former TNCC (Tamil Nadu Congress Committee) president EVKS Elangovan on Saturday allayed fears about DMK’s continuance in the Congress alliance and said the DMK, Congress, and other secular parties were in the same alliance.

Speaking to media persons after meeting Chief Minister MK Stalin at DMK headquarters Anna Arivalayam early Saturday, Elangovan said, “DMK, Congress, VCK, MDMK and secular parties are in an alliance. One need not attribute anything else to it (the statement of Thirumavalavan).”

Elangovan was responding to a query on VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan asking the Chief Minister to stand firmly with the Congress and not even remotely consider a non-Congress alliance, which would only help the BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Choosing to describe his meeting with the CM as a courtesy visit on Christmas day, Elangovan, reacting to a specific query on DMK’s role at the national level in 2024, said, “At the national level, Stalin was the first to pitch for a Congres government and Rahul Gandhi for Prime Minister.”

Thirumavalavan’s statement on the alliance issue has triggered media speculation about the DMK’s rising electoral importance vis-a-vis national politics.