- Thol Thirumavalavan denied media claims he was approached by AIADMK or DMK for chief ministership
- Thirumavalavan criticized media for twisting his words and spreading unconfirmed news
- He acknowledged Tamil society is not ready for a Dalit chief minister in Tamil Nadu yet
Thol Thirumavalavan, the chief of Tamil Nadu's Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) which won two seats and gave support to Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay's TVK, has made a long post in Tamil on X clarifying his comments on caste and its dynamics with regard to chief ministership.
The VCK chief denied media reports that said he was approached by both AIADMK and DMK to become chief minister if the two rival parties managed to form an alliance to stop the TVK from taking power.
In this context, Thirumavalavan asked the media not to spread wrong information by twisting the meaning of what he said.
"Today, some journalists met me. At that time, they asked various questions. At that moment, one journalist asked, 'They say that the Congress party has thwarted the efforts to make you the chief minister.' To that, I replied, 'I too received information that such an effort had taken place'," Thirumavalavan said in the post on X.
"I only said that some of my close friends approached me and spoke about it. Neither DMK nor AIADMK has officially approached me in that manner. Nor have I spoken to anyone about it. Yesterday and today, unconfirmed news about this has been appearing in the media. It was in this context that I provided an explanation to that question. However, it is unethical for the media to sensationalise it by headlining it in a way that implies a different meaning," Thirumavalavan said.
"It's a bitter truth known to all that the Tamil society is not yet ready for a person from the Dalit community to become the chief minister in Tamil Nadu. In India, there is a history of Dalits serving as chief ministers and wielding power in Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Punjab. But I am aware that even after another century, it will remain just a dream in Tamil Nadu.
"Nevertheless, it was said that such a conversation took place in the current political context. So, in response to a journalist's question, I said, 'I too received information about it.' It is painful to see some media outlets spreading news by twisting it with the ulterior motive of giving it another meaning," Thirumavalavan said.
The TVK has the support of Congress, CPI, CPI(M), VCK and IUML. Congress has five MLAs; CPI, CPI(M) VCK and IUML have two MLAs each. The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) registered a major victory in the recent elections, emerging as the single-largest party with 108 seats in the assembly.
