MK Stalin’s birthday wish for Rahul Gandhi tells Congress-DMK break-up story

June 19, 2025: DMK supremo and then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote on X, “Warm birthday wishes to my brother-in-ideals, @RahulGandhi — bound not by blood, but by thought, vision, and purpose. May you continue to stand firm and lead with courage. In our march towards a brighter India, victory shall be ours.”

June 19, 2026: Stalin, now a former Chief Minister, posted on X, “Birthday greetings to Hon’ble Leader of Opposition Thiru. Rahul Gandhi. Wishing you good health and happiness.”

The difference between the two posts – one personal, the other distant – tells the story of the Congress-DMK alliance in Tamil Nadu, which broke days after the MK Stalin-led party suffered a shocking defeat in the Assembly polls in May.

The Congress-DMK break-up

In a surprise move, the Congress snapped ties with the DMK on May 6 and put its weight behind actor-politician Vijay’s TVK, which put up a stellar show in its poll debut and fell just short of the majority. With the support of the Congress, and other smaller parties, TVK managed to cross the halfway mark and form the government.

The DMK responded sharply to the Congress move, with Stalin’s son and former minister Udhayanidhi Stalin accusing the Grand Old Party of “stabbing in the back”. The DMK leadership wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, and said it would not be appropriate for its MPs to sit with Congress members in Parliament. The party, once a key member of the INDIA opposition bloc, also skipped its latest meeting on June 8.

The Congress, while announcing support for the TVK on May 6, said this alliance was founded on “mutual respect, appropriate share and shared responsibility between the two parties”. Its support, however, was conditional on TVK not having a truck with the BJP.

DMK’s official mouthpiece, Murasoli, has launched a blistering attack on Gandhi. It questioned how Rahul Gandhi can talk about opposition unity when, according to the DMK, he has spent years undermining it. The editorial flagged Gandhi’s repeated attacks on Kerala Chief Minister Vijayan and the CPM, particularly his allegation during the poll campaign of a “secret understanding” between the Left and the BJP.

At the recent INDIA alliance discussions, CPM leaders confronted Gandhi over those remarks. The Murasoli editorial invoked CPI general secretary D Raja’s criticism that Rahul’s comments reflected “political immaturity.”

The friction build-up

While the Congress pulled the plug on the alliance right after the polls, strains in the ties were visible long before that. Such was the friction that Gandhi and Stalin did not share the stage in the run-up to the Assembly polls.

A section of Congress leaders in Tamil Nadu, upset with the DMK, spotted an opportunity in the poll results. And the high command’s go-ahead cleared the decks for a pact with TVK.

Vijay described Rahul Gandhi as “my dear brother” in his birthday post

How Vijay wished Rahul

Interestingly, while Stalin dropped the ‘brother’ from his birthday wish, incumbent Chief Minister and Congress’s new ally Vijay referred to Gandhi as ‘my dear brother’ and wrote a long post on X.

“Warm birthday wishes to my dear brother, the esteemed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Thiru. Rahul Gandhi. You, who continue to raise your voice for the progress of our great nation India, for safeguarding democratic values, and for the welfare of people from all sections of society, I wish good health, a long life, success in all your endeavors, and the ability to serve with distinction in public life,” he said.

“I wish you good health and a long life as you continue to raise your voice for the nation’s progress, the preservation of democratic values and the welfare of people from all walks of life. May all your endeavours meet with success and may you continue to serve with distinction in public life,” he added.