DMK's Dig At Vijay Ahead Of Rahul Gandhi's Visit: 'Will 2 PM Candidates Meet?'

The DMK on Thursday attacked Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay-led TVK for not naming the BJP government in its response to the arrest of Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi in Delhi. DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran asked whether the "two prime ministerial candidates" would meet when Rahul Gandhi visits Chennai on Saturday, a dig at both Vijay and Rahul.

In his post on X in Tamil, Maran described the TVK-Congress partnership as an "incompatible alliance" and accused Vijay of a "double action". With it, he posted a cartoon showing a two-headed Vijay on a tightrope, holding hands with Gandhi on one side and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the other.

The Central Chennai MP said the doubt had grown stronger after TVK's response to Gandhi's arrest during the protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

"Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is reportedly visiting Chennai on October 10. I have the same doubt that everyone has: 'Will the two prime ministerial candidates meet each other in Chennai?'" Maran wrote.

"This doubt gets stronger after seeing that the TVK leader did not even open his mouth on the arrest of Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the protest against the Chief Election Commissioner, and the anonymous objection tweet (X post) released by TVK, vague and generic, in soothing words, without even the word BJP," he wrote.

Maran said Vijay was trying to keep both the Congress and the BJP on his side. "People have not failed to notice Vijay's double action -- giving two ministerial posts to the Congress to protect his chair, while keeping away from the INDIA bloc because the BJP would get angry," he wrote.

அக்டோபர் 10 அன்று காங்கிரஸ் தலைவர் ராகுல்காந்தி சென்னை வருகையாம். எல்லாருக்கும் ஏற்படும் சந்தேகம்தான் எனக்கும். “இரண்டு பிரதமர் வேட்பாளர்களும் சென்னையில் சந்தித்துக் கொள்வார்களா?” அதுவும், தலைமைத் தேர்தல் ஆணையருக்கு எதிரான போராட்டத்தில் எதிர்க்கட்சித் தலைவர் ராகுல் காந்தி கைதுக்கு, த.வெ.க. தலைவரும் வாயைத் திறக்கவில்லை, பொத்தாம்பொதுவாக, பா.ஜ.க. என்ற சொல்லே இல்லாமல், வருடிக் கொடுக்கும் வார்த்தைகளால் த.வெ.க. வெளியிட்ட அநாமதேய ஆட்சேபனை ட்வீட்டைப் பார்த்தபின் இந்தச் சந்தேகம் மேலும் வலுக்கிறது. தனது நாற்காலியைக் காப்பாற்றிக்கொள்ள, காங்கிரசுக்கு இரண்டு அமைச்சர் பதவிகளைத் தந்துவிட்டு, பா.ஜ.க. கோபித்துக்கொள்ளும் என்பதற்காக இந்தியா கூட்டணியில் இருந்து ஒதுங்கி இருக்கும் விஜய்யின் Double Action-ஐ மக்கள் கவனிக்காமல் இல்லை. பாலுக்கும் காவல், பூனைக்கும் தோழனாக எத்தனை நாள் இவர்களின் பொருந்தாக் கூட்டணி நீடிக்கிறது என்று பார்ப்போம். கத்தரிக்காய் முற்றினால் கடைத்தெருக்கு வந்துதானே ஆக வேண்டும்!

— Dayanidhi Maran தயாநிதி மாறன் (@Dayanidhi_Maran) October 8, 2026

He also predicted the alliance would break up. "When the brinjal ripens, it has to come to the market street, doesn't it!" Maran wrote, using a Tamil proverb that refers to a hidden matter eventually becoming public.

TVK had condemned the arrest of Gandhi and other MPs in a social media post. It called the manner of arrest highly objectionable and said such heavy-handed approaches must be given up, news agency PTI reported.

DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan said the statement failed to identify who was responsible for the action against Gandhi. "Who arrested Rahul Gandhi? They should condemn and explicitly mention the name of the BJP government," Elangovan said, referring to Gandhi's detention.

"It is the fundamental right of every political party to meet the CEC, but this government is not allowing the Leader of the Opposition to do so. Who should be blamed? The arrest was made by the Delhi Police, which comes under the control of the BJP-led Union government," he said.

Asked about reports that Gandhi would share a platform with Vijay in Chennai, Elangovan said, "I have no comment on that."

There was no immediate response from the TVK.

The Congress contested the 2026 Assembly polls as part of the DMK-led alliance. It switched to the TVK after the results. The TVK had fallen short of the majority of 118 seats in the 234-member Assembly, prompting the Congress, with five seats, to support Vijay. The Congress later joined the Cabinet.

The DMK has said its workers were deeply hurt by what they consider the betrayal committed by the Congress. The party has since stayed away from INDIA bloc meetings. The DMK has, however, said it would support in Parliament the Opposition's move seeking the removal of the CEC, despite no longer being part of the alliance.