CHENNAI: The clamour for a share in power, and not just seats, raised by a section of Congress leaders here will echo before the high command, as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) has convened a key preparatory meeting on Tamil Nadu Assembly elections at its headquarters, Indira Bhavan, in New Delhi on Saturday.
The meeting will be chaired by AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and attended by Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
While the discussions are ostensibly on the party’s electoral strategy, organisational preparedness, and coordination ahead of the crucial Assembly polls, what is expected to be discussed threadbare is the inclusion in the State cabinet, a demand that alliance leader DMK has repeatedly and openly rebuffed.
Senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Friday defended the party's demand, saying every political party aspires to have a role in governance. In his brief interaction with the media at the Chennai airport, Pilot, who is said to be close to Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, said, "Every political party wants representation. I think there is nothing wrong in the Congress cadres asking for it so that they can help the people of Tamil Nadu.”
The meeting has been convened at a time when several Congress leaders, the most vocal of them being Virudhunagar MP Manickam Tagore, who has been insisting on it. On Thursday, Tagore cited the example of the United Democratic Front in neighbouring Kerala led by Congress as a model for sharing power with the alliance partners.
This triggered instant rebuke from DMK supporters, who recalled Tagore’s electoral performance (bagging less than four per cent vote share) when the Congress was not part of the DMK-led alliance.
Refusing to let go of the demand, Tagore doubled down on Friday, saying whenever Congress joined a coalition government, it never hankered for ‘lucrative’ departments like PWD, Highways and Minerals but accepted portfolios like health, social justice and rural development to reach out to the people.
Responding to Congress leaders’ demand, DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan said while every party has sought a share in power, the final decision rested with DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin alone.
Speaking to DT Next, Manickam Tagore said power sharing was a key demand for the Congress in the 2026 election. Brushing aside DMK leaders’ criticism on social media, he said, " I will present the list of ministries that Congress should seek from the DMK in our preparatory meeting in Delhi on Saturday."
Echoing the demand, Karti Chidambaram on Friday said the party’s demand for a share in power was neither new nor unusual, asserting that it was a natural and legitimate expectation of any political party that contests elections. “That is precisely why parties exist. Otherwise, we could simply function as social service organisations like Lions Club or Rotary Club,” he remarked.
He added that across democratic countries worldwide, all political parties that enter the electoral arena share similar expectations. “The Congress party’s expectation is no different from the average expectation of any political party contesting elections in a democracy,” he said.
Senior leaders from Tamil Nadu, including State unit president K Selvaperunthagai, AICC’s Tamil Nadu in-charge Girish Chodankar, and leaders of various AICC frontal organisations from the State, will be part of the meeting in Delhi on Saturday.
Key TNCC meeting on January 19 to chart poll strategy
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee has convened a crucial meeting of its State executive and general body in Chennai on January 19, as the party steps up preparations for the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
The meeting to be chaired by Selvaperunthagai is expected to focus on strengthening the party organisation and reviewing grassroots level activities and finalising the roadmap for the upcoming Assembly polls.
Tamil Nadu in-charge Girish Chodankar and AICC secretaries Suraj Hegde and Nivedith Alva, Assembly floor leader S Rajeshkumar, and other senior leaders will also take part in the meeting.