<p>If all goes well, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) will add another Rajya Sabha MP to its kitty. </p><p>The party has sought the support of its new ally, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), for the June 18 bypolls to the Rajya Sabha seat that fell vacant due to the resignation of AIADMK’s C Ve Shanmugam. </p>.Elections to 24 Rajya Sabha seats in 10 States, including four in Karnataka, on June 18.<p>With 107 MLAs, the TVK can easily secure the seat without a contest, making its debut in the Rajya Sabha, within 26 months of the party’s launch. However, the party is mulling allotting the seat to the Congress, which has five MLAs in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. </p><p>If the TVK allots the seat to the party, the Congress is likely to nominate Praveen Chakravarty, the chief of the All India Professional Congress. </p>.BJP considering Sadananda Gowda for Rajya Sabha.<p>The by-election was necessitated after Shanmugam resigned following his election to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Mailam constituency in Villupuram district. His tenure as an MP was to end in June 2028. </p><p>“We have requested Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to allot the RS seat to the Congress as we look to strengthen our presence in the Upper House. We don’t see any reason for him to reject our request,” a source aware of the developments told <em>DH</em>. </p><p>The request was made to Vijay after the Congress formally submitted the letter of support of its five MLAs to the TVK government. While joining Chief Minister Vijay’s government, the Congress had announced that the alliance will continue for the 2029 Lok Sabha polls. </p><p>A source in the TVK confirmed the request from the Congress for the RS seat, saying a decision in this regard will be taken by the party president in due course. If the TVK allots the seat to the Congress, the party’s next chance to enter Rajya Sabha independently will come in 2028 when six members from the state retire. </p>.Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 | AIADMK’s C Ve Shanmugam resigns from Rajya Sabha.<p>On Praveen Chakravarthy, another source said, “He's the most obvious choice as he has been trying for a RS seat for some time. The fact that he enjoys good relations with Vijay is an added advantage for him.”</p><p>Chakravarty, a close aide of the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, has been a strong proponent of the Congress-TVK alliance even before the 2026 Assembly elections. Chakravarty, whose bid to secure the Mayiladuthurai seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections failed due to objections from then-ally DMK, had met Vijay multiple times in the run-up to the elections, which caused a visible strain in the relationship between the Congress and DMK. </p><p>He also played a key role in pushing the Congress leadership to quit the DMK alliance immediately after the elections results were out and express support to TVK, which fell short of a majority by 10 seats. </p><p>If Congress is alloted the seat, it will take the number of Rajya Sabha MPs from the state to three, alongside P Chidambaram and Christoper Tilak, who were elected in 2022 and 2026, respectively with DMK support.</p>
<p>If all goes well, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) will add another Rajya Sabha MP to its kitty. </p><p>The party has sought the support of its new ally, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), for the June 18 bypolls to the Rajya Sabha seat that fell vacant due to the resignation of AIADMK’s C Ve Shanmugam. </p>.Elections to 24 Rajya Sabha seats in 10 States, including four in Karnataka, on June 18.<p>With 107 MLAs, the TVK can easily secure the seat without a contest, making its debut in the Rajya Sabha, within 26 months of the party’s launch. However, the party is mulling allotting the seat to the Congress, which has five MLAs in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. </p><p>If the TVK allots the seat to the party, the Congress is likely to nominate Praveen Chakravarty, the chief of the All India Professional Congress. </p>.BJP considering Sadananda Gowda for Rajya Sabha.<p>The by-election was necessitated after Shanmugam resigned following his election to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Mailam constituency in Villupuram district. His tenure as an MP was to end in June 2028. </p><p>“We have requested Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to allot the RS seat to the Congress as we look to strengthen our presence in the Upper House. We don’t see any reason for him to reject our request,” a source aware of the developments told <em>DH</em>. </p><p>The request was made to Vijay after the Congress formally submitted the letter of support of its five MLAs to the TVK government. While joining Chief Minister Vijay’s government, the Congress had announced that the alliance will continue for the 2029 Lok Sabha polls. </p><p>A source in the TVK confirmed the request from the Congress for the RS seat, saying a decision in this regard will be taken by the party president in due course. If the TVK allots the seat to the Congress, the party’s next chance to enter Rajya Sabha independently will come in 2028 when six members from the state retire. </p>.Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 | AIADMK’s C Ve Shanmugam resigns from Rajya Sabha.<p>On Praveen Chakravarthy, another source said, “He's the most obvious choice as he has been trying for a RS seat for some time. The fact that he enjoys good relations with Vijay is an added advantage for him.”</p><p>Chakravarty, a close aide of the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, has been a strong proponent of the Congress-TVK alliance even before the 2026 Assembly elections. Chakravarty, whose bid to secure the Mayiladuthurai seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections failed due to objections from then-ally DMK, had met Vijay multiple times in the run-up to the elections, which caused a visible strain in the relationship between the Congress and DMK. </p><p>He also played a key role in pushing the Congress leadership to quit the DMK alliance immediately after the elections results were out and express support to TVK, which fell short of a majority by 10 seats. </p><p>If Congress is alloted the seat, it will take the number of Rajya Sabha MPs from the state to three, alongside P Chidambaram and Christoper Tilak, who were elected in 2022 and 2026, respectively with DMK support.</p>