Chennai: A month after the assembly election debacle, Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC) walked out of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Sunday.TMC president G K Vasan said the exit from the AIADMK – BJP alliance was aimed at ‘reviving and strengthening’ the party and not intended for joining some other alliance. The decision was taken at TMC’s executive council meeting in Chennai, months ahead of the local body elections.“I will not think of joining another alliance for the next seven or eight months. Our party became weak because of alliances. We will first focus on strengthening the organisation and enhancing our political relevance. Alliance decisions can be discussed closer to the local body elections,” he Vasan told reporters after the meeting.At the same time, he kept his options open for the future, saying TMC was willing to engage with all political formations. “We are open to everyone – BJP, AIADMK, DMK, PMK or even Annamalai’s new party,” he said.Vasan said the exit was not because of any fallout with NDA partners. “I have no complaints against any alliance partner. The sole objective of leaving NDA was to strengthen TMC,” he said.Vasan said TMC’s continuous participation in alliances had weakened its independent political identity. Since its formation, the party has been part of various fronts, including the People Welfare Front in 2016 and the NDA since the 2019 Lok Sabha election.“When we are in an alliance, there are limitations. We cannot always raise issues or launch protests independently. We need political space to take bold decisions and reconnect with the people,” he said.The decision comes after TMC’s poor show in the 2026 assembly election. Contesting five seats as part of the NDA under BJP’s Lotus symbol, the party failed to win a single constituency. There was also discontent within the party over the constituencies allotted to it by AIADMK during seat-sharing negotiations.
