Udhayanidhi Stalin wanted to form a DMK–AIADMK alliance: Manickam Tagore
The bitter fallout between the Congress and the DMK intensified on Sunday, with Congress MP Manickam Tagore launching a sharp counterattack against DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin over his remarks accusing the national party of “betrayal” after the Tamil Nadu Assembly election results.
Tagore termed Udhayanidhi’s comments “irresponsible” and accused him of forgetting the Congress party’s role in supporting his political rise. “It is very disheartening to see the Leader of Opposition, who should act responsibly, speaking irresponsibly,” Tagore said.
“He forgot that Congress carried him on its shoulders as he became Minister and then Deputy Chief Minister. This is called being ungrateful,” he added.
Escalating the political attack, Tagore alleged that backchannel talks had taken place between the DMK and the AIADMK after the election results, allegedly with the BJP attempting to facilitate an arrangement aimed at preventing actor-turned-politician Vijay from becoming chief minister.
“As the results were being announced and losing, talks were on between AIADMK and DMK with BJP’s control to form government,” Tagore claimed. “The only reason was to make sure TVK leader should not become CM,” he alleged.
The Congress leader further claimed his party stayed away from the DMK after learning about the alleged discussions. “We didn’t reveal this and that is why we didn’t go there. If you ask why we didn’t go on the 5th, it is because they initiated talks on the 4th,” he said.
Tagore also accused the BJP of attempting to engineer a political realignment in Tamil Nadu. “Congress always stood with the secular alliance. BJP was making the connecting call between the DMK and AIADMK, which is against our principle. Any understanding with the BJP will not be tolerated by the Congress,” he said.
The Congress response came a day after Udhayanidhi launched a blistering attack on the party, accusing it of “stabbing the DMK in the back” after benefiting electorally from the alliance.