Rohit Kumar
NEW DELHI, May 5: In an unprecedented political transition, Tamil Nadu for the first time since 1977, is likely to witness a government outside the DMK-AIADMK orbit as the actor-turned-politician Joseph Vijay is preparing to be sworn in as the next Chief Minister on May 7.
Media reports citing sources said on Tuesday that the oath-taking ceremony is likely to be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai. His party, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), has delivered a sensational debut performance, emerging as the single largest party in the 234-member Assembly by securing 108 seats.
The rise of TVK marks one of the biggest political shake-ups in the state’s recent history. By falling only ten seats short of the majority mark of 118, the party has disrupted the decades-long dominance of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. To form the government, TVK is expected to seek additional support from parties such as the Congress, PMK, Left parties, CPI(M) and the VCK, which may help it cross the majority threshold.
The Congress leader KC Venugopal on Tuesday confirmed that Vijay has sought his party’s support to form the government. He said the Congress’s Tamil Nadu unit would meet on Wednesday in Chennai and take a call on the matter. He said the party did not want a BJP government in the state since the mandate is clearly for a “secular government.”
Separately, sources said the Congress is likely to support the TVK and the party’s central leadership has given full autonomy to the state unit to take an independent decision. Others are also likely to be part of the new government, sources said, without identifying them. Vijay has to officially claim stake to form the government. Only after that he can take the oath.
Tamil Nadu Congress in-charge Girish Chodankar confirmed that Vijay wrote a letter to the Congress chief seeking support. “We are considering it. Our performance was not very good; there was a wave in favor of Vijay, and he received votes from the youth and women. The mandate is in favor of a secular government,” Chodankar said.
The TVK is the single-largest party with 108 seats. With no party getting the majority mark of 118 in the 234-member assembly, the state has entered a phase of intense negotiations. Vijay also posted his first post-victory statement on X this evening, thanking supporters for overcoming great odds to reach where the TVK is today.
“…Many spoke against us after we started the party. We overcame it all. We stood alone, trusting the people. Insults disguised as neutrality and criticism came our way. But those for whom we came into politics to pay our debt of gratitude – our own people, our Tamil Nadu, have always supported us like a mother and are continuing to do so,” Vijay said in the long post in Tamil on X.
Outgoing Chief Minister MK Stalin faced a significant setback after losing the Kolathur seat to TVK candidate VS Babu by 8,795 votes. The DMK managed to win only 59 seats which reflects a steep decline in its electoral strength. Following the results, Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Arlekar accepted Stalin’s resignation along with that of his Council of Ministers and requested him to remain in office until the new government assumes charge.
Vijay’s entry into full-time politics places him alongside iconic actor-leaders like NT Rama Rao, MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa. Meanwhile, key alliance leaders, including Thol Thirumavalavan, CPI(M) State Secretary Shanmugam and CPI State Secretary Veerapandian, are expected to meet Stalin to discuss the way forward for the opposition.
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