Tagore says TVK chief Vijay likely to back Rahul Gandhi for 2029 prime‑minister race

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president B. Manickam Tagore told The Hindu he is sure TVK leader C. Joseph Vijay will endorse Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as the INDIA bloc's prime‑ministerial candidate for the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. Tagore said Vijay is expected to make the announcement when the campaign starts, adding that earlier slogans calling Vijay a "future Prime Minister" have been dropped by the party. He noted that only a few TVK members had voiced personal wishes and that the official support will come later. The Tamil Nadu Congress will contest the election projecting Rahul Gandhi, and Tagore claimed the party will have Vijay's backing. Tagore also criticised the DMK, which left the INDIA bloc after the Congress joined the TVK‑led ministry following the state assembly polls. He warned the DMK will not win the Lok Sabha race even if it forms a national third front, recalling that the DMK contested alone in 2014 and performed poorly. He said the DMK's exit has not weakened the opposition; all 23 members of the INDIA bloc remain ideologically united. Tagore dismissed the likelihood of a genuine third front, calling movements such as the Cockroach Janata Party a temporary phenomenon and accusing the BJP of spreading third‑front stories to split opposition votes. On TVK's stance, he said the young party stands with Congress on issues like delimitation and will join the Secular Social Justice Victory Alliance to oppose any BJP action in Tamil Nadu. He explained TVK's low profile on national issues as a matter of style rather than neglect.