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Why Praveen Chakravarty sees Vijay govt as a chance for TN Congress to revive itself

Why Praveen Chakravarty sees Vijay govt as a chance for TN Congress to revive itself

The Federal 3 days ago

A striking generational divide convinced the Congress that Vijay's TVK was not just another actor-led political experiment, according to Congress leader Praveen Chakravarty.

Chakravarty, chairman of the Congress party's data analytics department and head of the All India Professionals Congress, explained why he pushed for a Congress-TVK alliance.

"I have done a lot of election-related data work for 10-15 years. Last July, I was doing field data work in Tamil Nadu to understand how the political landscape could be impacted by TVK. I was quite stunned by what I saw," he recalled.

"It reminded me of Punjab in 2022, where people were tired of the Congress-Akali establishment and wanted to give AAP a chance. But in Tamil Nadu, the difference was that this sentiment was heavily age-driven.

His data analysis showed that as many as 70-85 per cent of voters below 40 were willing to back TVK, while a large majority of voters above 50 were opposed to it - something he described as unprecedented in Indian politics.

Across age brackets, class, caste

"It was not just the level of support. What stood out was the age divide. In my entire experience following elections in India, I had never seen such a stark age fault line. Among people below 40, around 70-85 per cent said they would vote for this new party. Among people above 50, around 80 per cent said they would not. This divide cut across caste, class, geography and ideology. It overrode everything else," Chakravarty added.

When we asked why, the answer was very clear: people were tired of establishment politics and wanted to give someone new a chance. They were not even sure whether it would work, but they wanted change.

"It reminded me of Punjab in 2022, where people were tired of the Congress-Akali establishment and wanted to give AAP a chance. But in Tamil Nadu, the difference was that this sentiment was heavily age-driven," he said.

To join government

Chakravarty was emphatic that the Congress would be part of the Vijay government. "This has been a long-standing demand of the Tamil Nadu Congress even before the election. We do not see why Tamil Nadu cannot have a coalition government," he said.

"But we are speaking literally the day after the floor test, so we would like to give these things some time to evolve," he added.

The party has been out of power for 60 years and organisationally stagnant for nearly two decades. But the enthusiasm among Congress cadre now is visible.

Asked what role he would play in the Congress-TVK relationship, he replied that it is up to the leadership to decide. "But right now, I am acting as one of the key mediators between the Congress and TVK. A lot of things are still evolving and it is still very early days," he further said.

Is there any possibility of him entering the Rajya Sabha with TVK support? "I honestly do not know," said Chakravarty. "A lot of these discussions are happening now because of the current political situation. But when we argued for an alliance with TVK before the election, none of us knew how events would unfold. We could have allied with TVK and lost. Or we could have stayed with the DMK and TVK might still have won. Many outcomes were possible."

Rebuilding Congress

There has been a multi-decade inertia within the Tamil Nadu Congress, rued Chakravarty. "The party has been out of power for 60 years and organisationally stagnant for nearly two decades. But the enthusiasm among Congress cadre now is visible," he said.

"When Chief Minister Vijay visited the Tamil Nadu the Congress office two days ago, it was the first time in more than two decades that a sitting chief minister had visited the Congress office. That itself reflects the new energy and respect this alliance has created," he added.

"But rebuilding the Congress organisation is entirely our responsibility. We must use this opportunity to strengthen the party."

Politics is a combat sport, he observed, noting that there will always be internal competition and disagreements over leadership positions. "Once decisions are made, however, everyone falls in line," he said. "Yes, it may have taken 10 days to take some decisions, but that also reflects how serious and consultative the process is within the Congress."

Upbeat on Vijay govt

Chakravarty is confident that the TVK government will perform well. The party is just three years old, and coalition governance is difficult even for experienced parties, he said. "But I think the government has got off to a very good start. The CM has visited leaders of every party and made it very clear that he is CM for everyone, not just those who voted for him," he noted. "He has also shown sincerity and willingness to take feedback."

"I believe it can complete its five-year term and provide good governance."

Chakravarty also believes the TVK has become a trendsetter. "We are seeing this globally and across South Asia - in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. People are tired of traditional establishment politics and want something new. That freshness matters," he said.

He is also confident the Congress will have a key role to play in the government. "We may have only five MLAs in Tamil Nadu, but it also has a 150-year institutional history, networks and experience. We understand we are small in Tamil Nadu's larger political landscape, but we are happy to help wherever we can - whether in governance, law, economy or administrative matters. Those conversations have already started," he said.

What clinched the decision

Talking about the Congress-TVK ties, Chakravarty said he a second round of groundwork in September and realised the Vijay phenomenon was something unique.

Add to that the fact that the DMK has never won re-election in its history because it tends to lose 12-15 per cent vote share after every term in power. "When I combined these factors, I felt TVK could do very well," he said.

We understand we are small in TN's larger political landscape, but we are happy to help wherever we can - whether in governance, law, economy or administrative matters. Those conversations have already started.

Chakravarty further said a TVK alliance represented a good opportunity for the party to revitalise itself in Tamil Nadu after 50 years. The fact that Vijay had clearly positioned the BJP as an ideological enemy and spoken about secular, progressive politics was also a key point.

"That is why I strongly supported an alliance," he said.

Karur, the turning point

The real turning point came after the Karur stampede at a Vijay rally, where 41 people lost their lives, according to the Congress leader.

"I had sent my team to speak to the families of the 41 people who died. These were families who had tragically lost loved ones at Vijay's political rally. Normally, you would expect anger against him. But every single family told us they were still going to vote for Vijay and that, if anything, they blamed the ruling government," he recalled.

"I am not here to question people's logic. I am here to listen to them. That reaction completely stunned me. That is when I realised there was an almost unshakeable faith in the need for change. After that, every attack on Vijay only made him stronger politically."

Initial hesitation

The Congress finally decided to back the Vijay government, providing a crucial five seats. There were two elements to this decision, said Chakravarty.

"One was my own empirical work that suggested TVK would do very well. The second was the mood within the Tamil Nadu Congress. More than three-fourths of the cadre, workers and office-bearers wanted an alliance with the TVK. They saw it as a chance to revitalise and rebuild the Congress with more seats, greater relevance and more respect," he said.

But there was some initial hesitation, which Chakravarty attributed to the Congress being a national party. "There are national compulsions and there are state-level sentiments. Eventually, the national leadership decided to continue with the DMK alliance," he said.

Misreading by media

"I also joke that perhaps they listened to the Delhi media too much. At that time, there was a strong narrative that the DMK was definitely returning to power. In hindsight, a lot of that was propaganda amplified by an agency funded by the DMK. Even senior Congress leaders publicly said the DMK was coming back. But the Congress party allows differences of opinion and everyone was free to express their view," Chakravarty said.

The bigger point is that sometimes parties start believing their own media narrative and become disconnected from reality, he added. "In hindsight, the Chief Minister (MK Stalin) lost, many ministers lost - how did we not see it coming?"

Vijay calling Rahul Gandhi

The quick willingness of the Congress to support the TVK surprised many, but Chakravarty said it was a seamless process, more or less.

"It was already well known that the Tamil Nadu Congress unit favoured an alliance with TVK. The leadership decided otherwise before the election and that decision backfired. After the election, the TVK fell short of a majority. When Vijay called Rahul Gandhi seeking support, I was part of that conversation," he said. "This time, the leadership in Delhi said it would allow the state unit to take the call."

The Tamil Nadu Congress political affairs committee met immediately, followed by the Congress Legislature Party. "There was absolute unanimity. Not a single dissenting voice. Everyone felt we should correct the mistake made before the election and support TVK," the leader said.

Question of stability

The Vijay government will complete its five-year tenure, insisted Chakravarty. "I think the VCK, IUML and Left parties have made it very clear that they fully support the TVK government. The next election is the 2029 Lok Sabha election, and different political formations may emerge then. But for now, everyone is united in supporting TVK for the next five years," he said.

He declined to comment on the internal rift within the AIADMK, but confirmed that there was an attempt by sections of both the Dravidian majors to come together to stop the TVK from forming the government.

"Our own position has remained consistent. We wanted an alliance with TVK and we wanted a secular, progressive government. If there is ever a clear deviation from secular and progressive politics by the TVK government, then of course there will be conversations. But I cannot comment on individual MLAs or isolated political developments," he said.

"Our focus is ensuring that secular forces remain in power. If policies emerge that strike at the secular fabric of the state, we will certainly respond," he added.

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