Thol Thirumavalavan on Tuesday alleged that both the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam had approached him with a proposal to become Tamil Nadu Chief Minister as part of a broader political arrangement aimed at preventing the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government.
The remarks from the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) leader came amid intensifying political turbulence in Tamil Nadu, with a dissident faction within the AIADMK accusing party chief Edappadi K. Palaniswami of attempting to align with long-time rival DMK to stop TVK's ascent.
The rebel AIADMK legislators have since announced support to the government led by C. Joseph Vijay ahead of the crucial floor test scheduled for Wednesday.
The DMK, however, rejected the allegations.
“I received information that they (DMK and AIADMK) had decided to make me the Chief Minister. However, after consultations with senior party leaders, we rejected the proposal,” Thirumavalavan told reporters.
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Responding to criticism over the VCK's delayed announcement backing TVK, Thirumavalavan said the party chose to proceed cautiously before making its political stand public.
“We cannot take decisions in haste,” he said.
He added that the VCK leadership held internal consultations through a Zoom meeting on May 8 to discuss the evolving political situation.
“Although we arrived at a decision, we could not announce it immediately because further discussions were required,” he said.
Thirumavalavan said expectations had built among both VCK and TVK supporters that the alliance decision would be announced on the morning of May 9.
“We never said that VCK would issue a statement on the morning of May 9. Discussions are a long process. Therefore, we took our own time before extending support to TVK,” he added.
The VCK secured two Assembly seats in the election and later extended support to TVK, strengthening Vijay's numbers in the race to form the government.
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