Chennai: The Congress appears to have bitten off more than it can chew. After chief minister M K Stalin‘s rejection of the power sharing demand, Congress has been pushed to a corner with only two options before it.Either swallow the pride and accept the DMK‘s position or walk out of the alliance rejecting DMK’s refusal to accept its demand for coalition govt. The third option – to persuade the DMK to change its mind, appears remote, because Stalin’s approach was well caliberated, say political observers. He has asserted DMK’s dominance in the alliance while reminding the Congress of ground reality. By stating that “power sharing will not suit Tamil Nadu,” Stalin has signalled that the DMK will not dilute its authority even if it depends on allies electorally.At the same time, he was careful to stress that the alliance will continue, indicating that the DMK does not want to strain the relationship further. In stating that there were “forces trying to create a divide,” Stalin has chosen to avoid direct confrontation with Congress. Stalin implied that he was not rejecting a demand of Congress party but only that of certain elements. Political commentator Suguna Diwakar said large number of Congress functionaries were not very particular about share in power, and that party would remain with the DMK. “There is no strong demand from the Congress leadership for a share in power. None of the party top brass was adamant about their demand. Only stray voices like AICC functionary Praveen Chakravarty and Congress MP Manickam Tagore made these demands,” he said. “At least now they are strong with 18 MLAs and if they join an untested player like Vijay they will be reduced to a minor party in the state,” said Suguna Diwakar. But politcal analyst T S S Mani said majority of Congress cadres and functionaries wish to go with the TVK. He told TOI that AICC general secretary K C Venugopal feels that TVK president Vijay has a considerable number of fans in Kerala as well as other southern states. “Congress leaders feel that this support base will help the party in 2029,” Mani said.For now, Congress has chosen a cautious approach. Manickam Tagore’s “let the people decide” statement and TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai’s statement that a final decision would be taken by Rahul Gandhi reflect this approach.
