Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay, leader of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), congratulated JCD Prabhakar and M. Ravishankar on Tuesday for assuming their roles as Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly respectively.
In his first speech, Chief Minister Vijay emphasized that the Assembly must operate as both the ‘heart and the brain’ of democracy. He said, “Here, everyone is equal. Even parties represented by a single member in this House must have their views valued equally alongside those expressed by the members of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, who hold a larger mandate. Good suggestions must be accepted, and unsuitable ones rejected. This Assembly must function as both the heart and the brain of democracy. It is with this vision that the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam has proposed a distinguished individual of great dignity and historic stature to preside over this esteemed Assembly, and today you occupy that Chair.”
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Vijay directed officials to close 717 TASMAC liquor retail outlets operating within a 500-metre radius of places of worship, educational institutions and bus stands within two weeks. The move affects 276 shops near places of worship, 186 near educational institutions and 255 near bus stands, according to an official survey ordered by the Chief Minister.
The Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation currently operates 4,765 liquor shops across the state. The government described the decision as significant given TASMAC’s status as one of the state’s largest revenue generators, despite long-standing demands from across party lines for such closures.
An official release stated, “With the welfare of the general public in mind, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, C Joseph Vijay, has issued orders to close within two weeks 717 retail liquor shops situated within a 500-metre radius of places of worship, educational institutions and bus stands.”
The TVK government has also been working to consolidate support in the Assembly following a fractured mandate. The party, holding 108 seats as the single largest force, is backed by the Congress, CPI and CPI(M). However, tensions emerged with the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) after MLA S Kamaraj expressed support for Vijay in the Assembly.
AMMK chief TTV Dhinakaran expelled Kamaraj for acting against the party’s position. The dispute heightened existing frictions between TVK and AMMK amid allegations concerning a purportedly forged letter of support by Kamaraj, which TVK denies, releasing a video appearing to show the MLA endorsing the Vijay-led government voluntarily.
In his initial days as Chief Minister, Joseph Vijay has taken decisive actions, from ordering TASMAC closures to engaging with opposition leaders and navigating legal challenges, as the TVK government continues to face scrutiny from the courts and opposition parties.
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