Opinion: Rahul Gandhi's 2029 PM Dream: The Allies He Cannot Take For Granted

Updated: Sep 03, 2026 19:20 pm IST Published On Sep 03, 2026 19:20 pm IST Last Updated On Sep 03, 2026 19:20 pm IST

Published On Sep 03, 2026 19:20 pm IST

Last Updated On Sep 03, 2026 19:20 pm IST

For Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the road to 7, Lok Kalyan Marg (formerly Race Course Road), or, more accurately, the Prime Minister's Office in a new India, is becoming a little more complex with every passing year. The Congress has been steadily building the case that Rahul Gandhi should be the natural Prime Ministerial face of the INDIA bloc in 2029. Yet, the biggest obstacle to that ambition may not be the BJP. It may again be the very allies whose support Rahul Gandhi will need to reach the top.

The latest flashpoint is Tamil Nadu.

Congress leaders in the state have now claimed that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and TVK (Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam) leader Vijay has backed Rahul Gandhi as the INDIA bloc's Prime Ministerial candidate. Congress leader Tharahai Cuthbert has even dismissed reports of a rift and maintained that Vijay and Rahul share mutual respect. 

But politics is rarely as simple as public reassurance.

Only days earlier, the Congress-TVK alliance was under considerable strain over reports of a 'Vijay for PM' campaign. A Congress minister went so far as to threaten resignation if TVK refused to endorse Rahul Gandhi for 2029.

That itself exposes Rahul Gandhi's fundamental problem - even when an ally eventually supports him, the support cannot necessarily be assumed to be unconditional.

False assumption of the bloc

The........

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