Vijay backs Rahul Gandhi as PM face: Congress leader rejects rift with TVK

Tamil Nadu Congress Legislature Party leader Tharahai Cuthbert said that Chief Minister Vijay had backed Rahul Gandhi as the INDIA bloc's Prime Ministerial candidate, dismissing speculation of a rift with ally TVK.

In Short

• Tharahai Cuthbert says TVK workers' enthusiasm fuelled 'Vijay for PM' pitch
• Insists Congress is not functioning in subservient role to TVK
• Congress threatened to quit alliance if TVK didn't back Rahul Gandhi as PM face

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay has chosen Rahul Gandhi as the INDIA bloc’s Prime Ministerial candidate, Congress Legislature Party leader Tharahai Cuthbert said on Monday, while rejecting speculation of a rift between her party and ally TVK.

Speaking to reporters, Cuthbert referred to India Today’s Mood of the Nation survey, which ranked Vijay third as the preferred choice for Prime Minister. The TVK subsequently pitched Vijay for the top post, prompting the Congress to threaten to quit the alliance unless he backed Rahul Gandhi as the INDIA bloc’s PM face.

She said projections of Vijay becoming Prime Minister in some quarters were driven by the enthusiasm of TVK workers and did not reflect the leadership’s official position. “The CM has chosen Rahul Gandhi as the PM candidate. That is how he is proceeding,” she said.

Both Vijay and Rahul Gandhi share a close rapport. Vijay, whose TVK made a stunning debut in this year’s Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, ended the decades-long dominance of the DMK and AIADMK. He invited Rahul Gandhi to his swearing-in ceremony in Chennai, where he publicly referred to him as his “brother”. Rahul Gandhi has also expressed his support for the TVK government.

Meanwhile, Cuthbert said the Congress was expanding independently in Tamil Nadu and did not function in a subservient role to the TVK. She added that the Congress was a democratic and autonomous party.

She described the recent FIR against Rahul Gandhi in Uttarakhand's Haldwani over the 'shuddhikaran' row as a sign of the BJP’s political anxiety. She claimed the BJP was intimidated by Rahul Gandhi’s wide public acceptance and that he would become Prime Minister in 2029.

Cuthbert also said the change in her seating arrangement in the Tamil Nadu Assembly was routine and linked to her new role as Congress floor leader, not to any political move.

Cuthbert was appointed leader of the CLP in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on August 13, and after taking charge, she was given a front-row seat on August 31, a place usually allotted to leaders of opposition parties.

- Ends
(with inputs from PTI)