India, May 7 -- It is useful to begin with recent chronology. The Congress fought the elections in Tamil Nadu as a junior partner of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). It fought in West Bengal against the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Both the DMK and the TMC have lost. The Congress has now started supporting the TMC in West Bengal and broken ranks with the DMK to support the surprise winner in Tamil Nadu, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).

What has the DMK done for the Congress over the past decade? In 2014, the Congress fought in Tamil Nadu on its own. The scars of events such as the 2G scam were still fresh. Both the DMK and the Congress got zero seats. In 2019 and 2024, it fought with the DMK and won eight and nine Lok Sabha seats in ...