Vijay entered politics claiming that TVK would be a “thooyasakthi,” a pure force that would stand apart from the corruption, manipulation, and transactional culture of Dravidian power politics. That moral positioning was not a side message; it was central to the way Vijay sold TVK to the public as the only ethical alternative.
But the current government-formation controversy has made even the supporters think whether their choice was right, whether TVK was indeed a thooyasakthi. AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran has accused TVK of trying to secure the support of AMMK’s lone MLA-elect, S. Kamaraj, through horse-trading, and has further alleged that the support letter shown in Kamaraj’s name was either forged or procured through illegitimate means.
#WATCH | Tamil Nadu | AMMK Party General Secretary TTV Dhinakaran says, “A letter was issued in support of TVK by my MLA Kamaraj. We are all shocked that I got an appointment with the Governor and I showed the real letter that I got from our CM candidate Edappadi Palaniswami… I… https://t.co/pHTPmAOu8w pic.twitter.com/C8NPSXcBXG
— ANI (@ANI) May 8, 2026
Dhinakaran did more than issue a political complaint. He rushed to the Governor, submitted a separate signed letter backing an AIADMK-led government under Edappadi K. Palaniswami, and publicly called the TVK episode “a mockery of democracy,” thereby converting a numbers battle into a question of constitutional propriety.
Then came the most politically damaging twist: TVK itself released a video claiming that Kamaraj had voluntarily extended support. TVK intended that footage as a defence against the forgery allegation, but the same video can also be read in a very different way, as evidence that TVK had managed to obtain the backing of an elected MLA from another party without the clear knowledge, control, or consent of that party’s leadership.
The Governor can treat the video released by the TVK side itself as evidence of poaching and horse trading involving elected MLAs. In fact, TVK may have unintentionally given the Governor a basis to initiate an investigation into the alleged horse trading. @lokbhavan_tn #TVKVijay https://t.co/DRMWKQKEgv
— Harish M (@chnmharish) May 8, 2026
If the support of an MLA from another party was obtained in contested and opaque circumstances during an active government-formation struggle, the Governor is not obliged to treat it as routine political paperwork; he can view the material placed before him, including the video released by TVK’s own side, as raising serious questions about poaching, inducement, and possible horse-trading.
In fact, TVK may have unintentionally deepened the suspicion around itself. A video meant to rebut Dhinakaran’s charge also serves to establish that direct contact took place with AMMK’s lone MLA at the very moment when party chief Dhinakaran was saying he was unable to reach him and was shocked to see support being claimed for Vijay.
This is the political irony Vijay cannot easily escape. A party that branded itself as morally superior is now caught in with allegations of horse-trading, the possible crossing over of an elected representative outside the visible authority of his own party leadership.
TVK may have thought it was releasing a defence, but politically it released an exhibit. By publishing video of Kamaraj reportedly extending support while AMMK leadership was denying any such authorised move, Vijay’s party may have handed the Governor a ready-made basis to suspect poaching, question the legitimacy of the claim, and consider whether a deeper inquiry into alleged horse-trading is warranted. Thus, with each day, TVK keeps falling to new lows with regard to its claims of being a ‘thooyasakthi’.
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