- 7 weeks ago
A political debate has emerged within the Tamil Nadu ruling alliance between the Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam and the Congress over the projection of the Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2029 general elections. Several legislators and ministers from the Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam have suggested that the future Prime Minister will be decided from Tamil Nadu, promoting Chief Minister Vijay for the national role. In response, Congress leaders have dismissed these statements, maintaining that Rahul Gandhi remains the Prime Ministerial face of the national opposition alliance. Congress representatives stated that the regional ally's members are operating in fan mode and asserted that top leadership stands behind Rahul Gandhi. The discussion highlights contrasting national leadership profiles, comparing the regional popularity, youth connect, and anti-establishment image of the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister with the parliamentary experience, nationwide party apparatus, and established opposition presence of the Congress leadership ahead of future general elections.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00TVK ready for Prime Minister Vijay. However, ally Congress remains unimpressed.
00:05Congress sticks to Rahul-only Prime Ministeral face stance.
00:08Congress MLA says TVK leaders are in fan club mode.
00:12Congress MLA, Katpert, says Rahul Gandhi is the Prime Ministeral face.
00:18TVK's top leadership is yet to speak.
00:20Multiple TVK ministers, let us tell you till now, have already come out to remark on this
00:25and have backed Vijay. C. Joseph Vijay, who's just stepped into the post of the Chief
00:31Ministership of Tamil Nadu only in the month of May 2026.
00:36He is now being looked at and pushed as 2029 Prime Ministeral face by the TVK ministers.
00:42Congress dismisses TVK's stance on Vijay national role.
00:45Well, that remains to be the question that we're discussing here.
00:48Before we get into more speculations and details of what's coming forward so far,
00:53let's quickly take a look as to what's being said.
00:57The remarks coming in at this given point.
00:59High for CM to become the Prime Minister is becoming high.
01:02Even now, Kani Mory has said that who will choose a PM for 2029 will happen from Tamil Nadu, is
01:06that so?
01:07See, it's a very good. They are all come from the fan bases.
01:11They are all fans, you know. And now they have become this MLA.
01:14Definitely, they will tell that only.
01:16See, politically, if you see the mileage is political, it's very clear.
01:20Rahul Gandhi is the Prime Minister for 29.
01:22What about CM Vijay there?
01:23CM Vijay is also in a very clear stand that Rahul Gandhi will be the Prime Minister.
01:27He's very clear.
01:27He's very clear. So, you need not see.
01:29The first-level leaders have not even told anything regarding that.
01:32And it is very clear Rahul Gandhi is the Prime Minister.
01:34You're making this question because the MLAs who are making this, not catering.
01:37I told you very clearly, they always tell their leader only.
01:41But the frontline leaders didn't tell that.
01:44They have really told that Rahul Gandhi is the PM.
01:48On that note, viewers, we have Ramoth Madhav joining us on the broadcast with more details and insights into this.
01:53Ramoth, a very good morning to you.
01:55You know, this echo, the chorus around Chief Minister Vijay for Prime Minister in 2029 has only been growing from
02:04the TVK's side.
02:05There seems to be a strong support base that's going for this very dream or vision that they have.
02:11But it is indeed creating quite the rumblings within the alliance that is ruling the state of Tamil Nadu right
02:20now,
02:21which is basically TVK and Congress because Congress is not very happy with what's happening.
02:29Good morning, Shreya.
02:30The only important thing we would like to highlight is that India today's mood of the nation is definitely causing
02:34quite a lot of ripples in the state of Tamil Nadu.
02:36And the present statement, today's statement was not made by any TVK caterer or so.
02:40It is Kani Mori Santosh, who is the TVK MLA from Qaimtun area.
02:45And she's the one who said that like just like how a change was, you saw a change in 2026,
02:50you will definitely see such a change in 2029.
02:52And she also said that the future Prime Minister in 2029 will not be chosen or decided from Delhi, but
02:58from Tamil Nadu.
02:59This is a very big statement.
03:00And that is why we got that exclusive conversation from Tarak Katpag, who is a Congress MLA.
03:04But it looks like Congress is still in denial mode.
03:07They simply, Congress wants to simply say that like they are still in fan club mode and the first level
03:12leaders have not made any such statement.
03:14Shreya, the first level leaders are the Varjuna, first level leader.
03:17Murray Wilson have also said the same thing.
03:19They claim that the next Prime Minister should be from Tamil Nadu.
03:23And Murray Wilson has gone a step ahead and said that Chief Minister Vijay is actually entering the national level
03:27forum.
03:28So, these are the statements that's made by the TVK ministers, the first level leaders.
03:32Still, Congress wants to be in denial just by negating, claiming that they are just fan club.
03:36And that's the reason they are speaking in such manner.
03:39Right, Pramod, there is definitely a lot of conversation that's been triggered from the Mood of the Nation polls of
03:47India today that we had, in fact, released last week itself.
03:50And the conversation has only gotten heated, more and more heated up with each passing day.
03:55And as we speak, Congress has also come out to say, viewers, let me tell you, Vijay says Rahul will
04:00be the Prime Ministerial candidate.
04:02This is what the Congress is also claiming.
04:03So, there is clearly tensions brewing at this given point.
04:07How the tensions will unfold, whether it will have an impact on the government that's just been formed only months
04:13ago as an alliance in Tamil Nadu.
04:15That's something we'll keep a very close look at.
04:17But Pramod, stay back with us, please.
04:19We have more news that's coming in.
04:20Let's quickly take a look.
04:32On that note, viewers, there's more that's coming in to this very story.
04:35The Vijay for Prime Minister chorus growing in Tamil Nadu.
04:38TVK claims massive change will happen in 2029.
04:42TVK says wait and watch on Vijay for Prime Minister call.
04:45TVK MLA claims massive change will happen in 2029 and says who will become Prime Minister will be decided from
04:53Tamil Nadu.
04:53TVK Minister Nirmal Kumar says let things happen organically on Vijay for Prime Minister.
04:58TVK Minister says there is still three to four years' time.
05:01When Vijay came to politics, no one believed we will win.
05:04So let's wait.
05:05So these are two reactions that's coming in that Pramod was also referring to.
05:09Let's quickly first take a look as to what the TVK ministers have to say before we take it up
05:13with Pramod on the other side.
05:16So let's listen to the people who have said that when they did the same thing as a man who
05:20has come out with the same breath as the Prime Minister.
05:23So let's look at the same thing as the people in Korea who have come out with those who are
05:24coming out with the same thing.
05:30Dengi, the other country has come out with the same issue as the Prime Minister.そう
05:38you know, we will kill them if you are coming out with the same thing. That's
05:42all. But this
05:42can be done with the same thing as the Prime Minister has to say before.
05:45We are talking about this.
05:54We have three people here.
05:56We are talking about this.
06:01We are talking about this.
06:13In 2020, you will see that people will be able to do it in Delhi and come to the Tamil
06:23Nadu.
06:25So, you will see that people will be able to do it in India.
06:30Do you think that people will be able to do it in Delhi?
07:02No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
07:04If you want me, you will be able to do it.
07:05If you want me, you will be able to do it.
07:10You will be able to do it.
07:11You will be able to do it.
07:11You will be able to do it.
07:13You will be able to do it.
07:17If we speak of the mood of the nation,
07:22just to understand one thing,
07:23it's not the first time that
07:26a certain chant has come in
07:28for a leader from down south to be pushed in
07:32as the prime ministerial candidate.
07:34In fact, India has seen prime ministers
07:36from down south as well.
07:38One thing is, yes, the TVK is flagging.
07:40Two years ago when this party came into formation,
07:42nobody even till 2026
07:44could believe that Chief Minister Vijay
07:46would actually pull it off and get the numbers.
07:48That is one place.
07:49That's one particular argument that they're putting forward.
07:53But even in the next three years,
07:55if you take a look at the mood of Tamil Nadu
07:57and also to set up a party nationally,
08:00it's a huge and a mammoth task
08:03that we are speaking of.
08:04The intact confidence with which TVK
08:07is projecting this or even pushing
08:08this idea forward for a 2029.
08:11Take us through,
08:12how is it that the mood of Tamil Nadu
08:15has fueled this further?
08:20Shreya, one thing we have to make it very clear
08:22is that like when Chief Minister Vijay Sarada's party,
08:24TVK, it is only not even two years old the whole,
08:27even though they need to be three years old
08:28at least to contest and such.
08:29But his party was like, you know, they have to complete
08:31that very, very short period they did it.
08:33And not just that, they defeated two very, very old
08:36and very, very fundamentally strong Dravidian parties,
08:39be it DMK or AIADMK.
08:42So that itself is giving them the confidence
08:44over such kind of like announcements.
08:46Very clearly, what Kanimari Santosh is saying,
08:49I have to, you know, repeat this once again.
08:51Kanimari Santosh says that it was Rahul Gandhi
08:53who brought Vijay to and made him sit
08:56in the Chief Minister chair
08:57and you will see the same kind of repetition again.
09:00And when question was put forward that,
09:02will you think Vijay will become the Prime Minister?
09:04She said, yes.
09:05So this is the kind of confidence that has been
09:06instilled upon the TVK netas and the carers over here.
09:10And very evidently, Vijay has quite a lot of huge fan base
09:13when it comes to Kerala as well.
09:14And if he's able to garner such a kind of support over here,
09:17imagine the entire Tamil population across the nation
09:20can come along together for Chief Minister Vijay.
09:23So that seems to be one particular reason
09:25that is instilling this much kind of, you know,
09:28confidence with TVK over here, Shreya.
09:31Right, Pramod.
09:32So that is the pitch that's been set for Vijay,
09:36at least for now, to in fact push forward his name
09:39for the Prime Ministerial candidate.
09:42Again, this is quite early to, of course,
09:45come in and comment on what will happen in 2029,
09:48finally, whether Vijay will indeed come up
09:52to even contest the elections as a Prime Ministerial candidate.
09:57But at this given point, Pramod, thank you
09:58for putting that into context for our viewers.
10:01We're keeping a very close watch of how
10:02the political side is also playing out
10:05when we are speaking of two allies, that is Congress and the TVK,
10:08eyeing for the same spot at this given point,
10:10which is the Prime Ministerial phase.
10:12Will it be Rahul Gandhi or will it be C. Joseph Vijay?
10:15That has begun to, in fact, create tensions within that alliance.
10:20Now, opposition's big Prime Ministerial puzzle.
10:23Let's take a look at this particular analysis that we bring to you.
10:25If we are to talk about Vijay, there is a strong mass appeal,
10:29there is no denying that, in Tamil Nadu itself.
10:32He's built a strong popularity, that is, following across Tamil Nadu.
10:38The youth first-time voter connect that he has.
10:42He's a young leader, viewers, that we have to understand,
10:44especially holding a post like that of the Chief Minister.
10:48He connects particularly well with the young people
10:52and the first-time voters.
10:53It's a fresh appeal that he has to himself
10:56instead of the leaders that we've seen for so long.
10:59Again, the fresh anti-establishment image as well that comes in here,
11:04which brings a new political identity,
11:06which is outside the traditional political establishment.
11:09So, the novelty factor really plays along
11:13to become quite crucial for Vijay.
11:16It can boost prospects of a Southern Prime Minister.
11:19This could actually strengthen the idea of a leader from South India
11:24becoming a Prime Ministerial contender.
11:26Of course, like I said earlier as well,
11:28that this is not the first time that India would, in fact,
11:31be looking at a Prime Minister who's hailed from down south.
11:35So, that definitely doesn't seem to be a criteria of its own at all.
11:39That how is it that a leader from down south
11:42will actually have a national appeal
11:44and bring together people to garner votes.
11:47Now, calls BJP's ideologically an adversary to them,
11:51the TVK at this given point,
11:53because he's publicly described the BJP as an ideological opponent.
11:56If you, in fact, remember, when he started the party in 2024, the TVK,
12:01it made two statements.
12:02That BJP is his ideological opponent
12:04and DMK is his political opponent.
12:06And that's how he, in fact, came ahead to shape the image of TVK in Tamil Nadu.
12:13It really did work in the very state.
12:16And to the surprise of almost all the political leaders,
12:19not just there, but nationally speaking for that matter.
12:21He's been working on a relationship with the centre.
12:24Despite political differences, however,
12:26his party has to work with the central government on various matters.
12:29So that cordial relations, which we had not, we had seen a bit of the burning of the bridges
12:34between the previous state government led by the DMK and the centre,
12:39that he's come out to balance very well.
12:41That, yes, we might be ideologically different from the BJP,
12:44but that doesn't mean that we'll not be working in alignment with the centre,
12:47because at the end of the day,
12:48Tamil Nadu requires the centre's support for its own growth and development as well.
12:52Limited political footprint outside Tamil Nadu,
12:55but this comes in to be a very crucial factor.
12:57How is it that a particular leader like him,
12:59who's established himself over the last two years as a political figure itself,
13:03comes about to establish his political presence nationally beyond the state of Tamil Nadu.
13:08His political influence, because right now,
13:10remains largely concentrated in the state of Tamil Nadu itself.
13:14And his national leadership still remains untested,
13:17because he's yet to demonstrate that leadership of a broad national political coalition.
13:22So, these are some of the opposition's big prime ministerial puzzle.
13:26Now, that is for Vijay that we've spoken so far.
13:29Now, let's also take a look at Rahul Gandhi
13:31and what the report card almost looks like for him at this given point.
13:35For Rahul Gandhi, he is, of course, he has a pan-India political experience.
13:38From leading movements to leading the opposition in the parliament itself,
13:43his campaign worked politically across different parts of India.
13:46He's an established opposition face in the country,
13:50because he's one of the most recognizable leaders of the opposition.
13:54Even when the India bloc had come into existence,
13:56it was the Congress that was leading it with Rahul Gandhi at the helm of affairs.
14:00Congress' national organizational network.
14:03Of course, Congress is known as the grand old party in the country
14:06and has access to the Congress parties, Rahul Gandhi that is.
14:11He has access to that nationwide organizational structure.
14:14Of course, experience in the parliament and national issues
14:17does play a very, very important role
14:19because he has long parliamentary experience as a member of the parliament
14:24and now as the leader of the opposition in the lower house as well
14:28and oftentimes leads the debates from the opposition side in the lower house
14:33and regularly speaks on major national issues,
14:35be it within the parliament or even outside of it for that matter.
14:39A history of taking on the BJP head-on,
14:41that's another thing that we have to consider
14:43because he's consistently challenged the BJP and their policies
14:46and he's seen as a passionate Modi critic
14:49who's known for strongly criticizing the Prime Minister and his government
14:53over a plethora of matters at this given point.
14:57In fact, the opposition face that we see coming out to speak against issues
15:01concerning the country at this given point is mostly Rahul Gandhi
15:05when it comes from the Congresses, when we speak of the Congresses' side especially.
15:09He's faced Congress internal rifts in some states as well.
15:12Congress has faced the internal disagreements and factionism in several states,
15:16so he's been through that.
15:17He's also come out to monitor a lot of those.
15:19The India Bloc not unanimous on Rahul as the Prime Ministerial face.
15:23That remains to be one concern at this given point,
15:26that even in 2024, the India Bloc was not convinced that Rahul Gandhi would become the Prime Ministerial face.
15:31There were several other leaders who were also coming out to hanker for the same position.
15:34Not all India Bloc parties had even then agreed to project Rahul Gandhi as their Prime Ministerial candidate,
15:40which had in fact become one of the major causes of the rift within the India Bloc,
15:44the crack within the India Bloc that we had seen,
15:46that they couldn't come on the same page and back Rahul Gandhi as the Prime Ministerial face even back then.