DMK spokesperson T.K.S. Elangovan on Tuesday, 22 September 2026 alleged that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay renamed the state's Free Breakfast Scheme to deny credit to former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who originally launched the programme. The accusation came as Vijay formally expanded the scheme — extending free morning meals to students in Classes 6 to 8, in addition to the existing coverage for Classes 1 to 5 — at a Government Middle School in Chennai.

The Accusation Against TVK Government

Elangovan was direct in his charge. “It was a scheme introduced by M.K. Stalin when we were in power. He has changed the name because he does not want to give credit to Stalin,” the DMK spokesperson said. He argued that the programme had earned national and international recognition under its original framing, claiming that “many countries also followed suit and introduced morning breakfast schemes for children” after Stalin launched it.

The claim positions the scheme expansion as a political appropriation — an attempt by Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government to absorb the credit for a welfare initiative the DMK regards as its own legacy.

DMK Takes Aim at TVK's Political Inexperience

Beyond the naming dispute, Elangovan levelled broader criticism at the TVK’s conduct in office. “TVK don’t know politics. When their MLAs speak, they kill Tamil. When their Ministers speak, they blabber something. They don’t care about what the people will think,” he said.

He also cited what he described as a specific instance of ministerial insensitivity. According to Elangovan, a cabinet minister reportedly told constituents who approached him with a grievance: “Did you vote for me? You had voted only for Vijay.” Elangovan characterised the remark as evidence of a government unwilling to serve voters who did not directly support the minister in question. The minister was not named in his remarks.

Scheme Expansion: What Changes on the Ground

The practical scope of the expansion is significant. The Free Breakfast Scheme now reaches government school students through the middle school years, covering ages roughly between 11 and 14. Welfare economists and child nutrition advocates have long argued that mid-morning hunger is a key driver of classroom dropout and attention deficits — making the upper-primary expansion an educationally relevant move, regardless of which party claims credit for it.

Notably, the scheme's continuation and expansion under a new government also reflects a broader cross-party consensus on school nutrition in Tamil Nadu, even if the political narrative around it remains contested.

Elangovan on India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement

In a separate remark during the same interaction, Elangovan also commented on the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, which is set to come into force on 20 October. He described it as “a good thing for the country,” characterising it as a straightforward bilateral trade exchange. “Whatever products are made in New Zealand, India will buy, and whatever products are made in India, New Zealand will buy. That’s a normal thing,” he said, drawing a distinction between trade agreements and industrial investment pacts.

Political Context

This is not the first time a welfare scheme's authorship has become a flashpoint in Tamil Nadu politics. Credit disputes over flagship programmes have been a recurring feature of the state’s competitive political landscape, where social welfare delivery is a key electoral currency. The DMK, currently in opposition at the state level, has a strong incentive to contest any narrative that credits the TVK government for programmes the party views as part of its own governance legacy under Stalin.

How Vijay’s government responds to the naming controversy — and whether it formally acknowledges the scheme’s origins — will be watched closely as the TVK works to establish its administrative identity.