TAMIL NADU, (India): Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) joined an INDIA bloc protest in Chennai on Thursday (Oct 15). It is the first time the party has stood with the alliance on the street. The protest was against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. It also demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The protest follows weeks of slow movement. TVK first took part in a state-level INDIA bloc meeting on Oct 3, with ministers Aadhav Arjuna and N Marie Wilson representing the party. Vijay himself did not attend that meeting.
How the road to Chennai was built
The October 3 meeting was held at the Tamil Nadu Congress headquarters. Congress, TVK, CPM, CPI, VCK, MDMK and IUML took part. The meeting passed five resolutions. One of them formally welcomed Vijay and his party.
Congress state president Manickam Tagore called it a “historic day.” He said the entry of TVK would strengthen the alliance in the state.
The plan was set that day. District-level protests were fixed for October 13 and 14. A larger demonstration was planned in Chennai on October 15. Tagore said all seven parties would be part of the Chennai event.
The DMK was missing from the room. Asked about this, Tagore said invitations had gone to parties opposing the BJP. The answer did not explain much. It showed how awkward the DMK’s position has become.
The Rahul Gandhi factor
A week later, Rahul Gandhi came to Chennai. On Oct 10, Vijay hosted him at his Neelankarai home for lunch and coffee. Congress sources said Rahul invited Vijay and the TVK to join future campaigns and protests against the BJP.
Rahul also congratulated Vijay on the TVK wins in the Dharapuram and Madurantakam by-elections. Those seats fell vacant after DMK MLAs quit their party and joined the TVK.
One can see it this way. Rahul needs Vijay, and Vijay needs Rahul. Congress gets a popular chief minister on its side. Vijay gets a national partner.
The “larger version” remark
The TVK has not always spoken this way. When its alliance was named in September, party leaders said they had no MPs. They said that meant they were not part of the parliamentary INDIA bloc.
That line has now changed. At the October 3 meeting, the party described the INDIA bloc as the “larger version” of its Tamil Nadu alliance. The remark drew questions about how much the party has really shifted.
Congress had also shifted. Tagore had earlier ruled out a TVK presence in the bloc, saying it was meant for parties with MPs. Both sides have walked back their own words.
Where the TVK draws a line
The TVK has not signed on to everything. It wants to oppose the SIR without backing the Congress demand to remove Gyanesh Kumar. A party voice also said that removing Kumar will not solve the problem.
This is a careful position. The party can stand at the protest and still keep some distance from its sharpest demand.
The party’s SIR stance is not new. In November 2025, the TVK held a statewide protest against the SIR. A leader said the exercise would strip people of their voting rights. Even then, the message was mixed. At the Coimbatore event, a TVK leader accepted that conducting the SIR is necessary.
What this means politically
The first meaning is about the DMK. The DMK has moved away from the INDIA bloc’s Tamil Nadu arrangement. It also opposes the SIR and wants Kumar removed. The old anti-BJP front in the state is now split into two camps.
The second meaning is about Congress. It has long needed a strong state partner in Tamil Nadu. The TVK, with a chief minister at the top, is a bigger prize than it looked a year ago.
The third meaning is about Vijay. He now governs a state and sits in a national opposition space. That gives him weight. It also ties him to a coalition with many voices.
The fourth meaning is about the BJP. Its leaders can now say that the TVK has joined the same bloc as its rivals. That lets them frame the state’s politics as a simple two-sided fight.
The first is about timing. The TVK took a long time to commit. Opponents say a party that waits for by-election wins before joining a bloc is acting out of convenience, not belief.
The second is about consistency. A party that calls the SIR a threat to voting rights, but also calls it necessary, sends mixed signals. Voters may ask what it really wants.
The third is about the Congress demand. Congress leaders in Delhi have called for the SIR to be scrapped. That could, in theory, put Vijay’s own win in doubt. The TVK has a reason to be careful here. It would be odd to fight for a process that could undo its own mandate.
The fourth is about protest rights at home. Chennai police detained more than 30 people on October 10 at a protest backing the Cockroach Janta Party’s Delhi march.
The same day, police arrested over 100 members of AISF and AIYF who marched for Kumar’s removal. A protester asked why the state government was shielding the election chief.
The TVK government now has to explain why it joins a street protest while its police stop other ones.
The fifth is about symbolism. Critics of the INDIA bloc point to its Delhi action. One report said that protest started as a united fight but ended as a Congress show.
The same charge could follow the Chennai event. A big crowd with many flags does not equal a lasting alliance.
To sum up
Several questions remain open.
Will Vijay himself lead from the front? So far, his ministers have done the formal work. A chief minister on the stage would send a stronger signal.
Will the TVK back the call to remove Kumar? Its present stand stops short of that. Pressure from Congress and the Left could grow.
Will the party attend INDIA bloc meetings in Delhi? It has not taken part in earlier ones there. That will show whether this is a state tie or a national one.
Will the DMK return to the table? A split front helps no one in the long run. Both sides know this.
For Congress, the day is a win. For Vijay, it is a test. - The Statesman/ANN
