Dharmapuri (TN), Sept 11 (PTI) Recalling his initial fierce opposition to actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay before eventually allying with him, VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan on Friday said he was the only leader who had spoke out against the TVK leader while the DMK remained silent.
According to Thirumavalavan, the DMK’s soft approach towards Vijay in the past was a political miscalculation that ultimately cost the party during the 2026 Assembly elections.
He specifically pointed to the previous DMK government’s reluctance to book the actor following a fatal stampede in Karur.
“Did I or did I not say that a case should be filed against Vijay regarding the Karur incident? Why wasn’t a case filed? What was the hesitation?” he asked, arguing that the DMK missed a crucial opportunity to expose Vijay’s politics early on.
Addressing a public gathering here, Thirumavalavan accused the DMK of “abandoning” its partners and “failing” to manage coalition dynamics during seat-sharing negotiations.
“The reality is that the DMK could not make the effort to tie us to that alliance, retain us there, or save that alliance. The DMK is 100 per cent responsible for the VCK not being able to continue in the alliance. The DMK’s approach is the reason Congress left,” he said.
The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) leader explained his decision to ally with CM Vijay’s Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), stating his stance changed when Vijay deliberately bypassed parties like the BJP, AIADMK, and PMK, and instead sought the support of the Congress and the VCK.
The VCK chief also claimed credit for inserting the word “Secular” into the TVK-led coalition’s name to establish a definitive anti-BJP stance.
“Chief Minister Vijay stood up and said he would name it the ‘Social Justice Victory Alliance’. I immediately intervened, and he agreed to name it the ‘Secular Social Justice Victory Alliance’,” he stated.
Dismissing allegations of political opportunism, Thirumavalavan insisted he had turned down direct offers from Vijay to join the state cabinet or contest the Trichy East by-election.
“When Vijay himself contacted me by phone, couldn’t I have immediately agreed? When he openly asked, ‘Come and become a minister,’ couldn’t I have accepted it?” he asked, noting he opted instead to pass the political opportunities to loyal party cadres. PTI JR JR ROH
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