Vijay’s political entry will only affect 3 parties, not DMK: Karti P Chidambaram

Karti P Chidambaram, Congress party’s Lok Sabha MP from Sivaganga, said actor Vijay’s political entry will affect three parties’ vote bank, but not of DMK.
Chidambaram, in an exclusive interview, agreed that there was “latent energy” in Vijay’s party but was sceptical about whether that would transform itself to face an assembly election.
“Definitely there is latent energy, definitely there is an appeal particularly among a certain section of people, especially younger, semi-urban, rural men. Whether it will turn into a consolidated vote bank, whether it will be able to win an election, a multi-cornered fight, I don’t know,” Karti P Chidambaram said.
“This party’s formation will definitely affect three players directly, in my opinion, and perhaps others indirectly, depending on the decisions they take,” the Congress MP said.
However, according to him, DMK will not be affected by Vijay’s Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK). “I don’t think DMK vote bank will be affected. DMK is a cadre-based party. It is a very strong organisation with great resources. Next leadership within the party has also been identified,” he clarified.
According to Karti P Chidambaram, one of three that would be affected by TVK’s entry would be Naam Tamilar Katchi and its leader Seeman, as a significant part of the vote bank will move to Vijay’s party. “His brand of anti-establishment, Tamil nationalism, angry young man’s voteâ€æ definitely a significant part will move to Vijay as he is a much more popular film star who is much more recognisable and identifiable,” Karti P Chidambaram said.
The Congress MP commented that Vijayakanth’s party had significantly declined, and Vijay’s political entry might question its need to exist independently. He added that the BJP’s efforts to position itself as an alternative to the Dravidian parties, along with Annamalai’s social media efforts, will lose support among the lower-income groups. “I believe that BJP will have far fewer votes in 2026 than in 2024, and BJP will find it difficult to make a credible alliance”, stated Karti P Chidambaram.
Karti also commented on actor-politician Vijay’s selective adoption of Dravidian and Congress policies. “He has gone to the buffet table and chosen what he wants. Even within the Dravidian pantheon, he has chosen one name and rejected two names. He must explain why he has chosen some figures and rejected others. His clarity can only come if he’s willing to take unscripted questions. Right now, it’s just sloganeering, like punch dialogues in Tamil cinema, but the devil is in the details.”
Karti acknowledged Vijay’s support for power-sharing within alliances, a stance he had raised in June. “Every party wants to be part of the government after winning an election. In Tamil Nadu, you are going to see a paradigm shift, where you can’t say that you are a part of the electoral alliance and not part of the government.
Karti P. Chidambaram pointed to Andhra Pradesh as an example, where Chandrababu Naidu formed an alliance, won a majority, and still included alliance partners in the government. “This is a positive sign. It’s not just my view; VCK, the Communist parties, and now Vijay’s party are also supporting this approach,” he said.