Rohit Kumar
NEW DELHI, May 10: Ending the decades of dominance by the two Dravidian parties the DMK and AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government was installed in the office on Sunday with
C Joseph Vijay, popularly known as “Thalapathy” among fans, taking oath as the chief minister at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, marking a major political shift in the state.
The TVK chief officially formed the government after days of intense political discussions and support from several parties that helped him cross the majority mark in the Assembly. With this, Vijay has become the first Tamil Nadu Chief Minister since 1967 who does not belong to either the DMK or the AIADMK.
Along with Vijay, nine TVK members also took oath as the cabinet ministers. Among the prominent faces was veteran AIADMK leader KA Sengottaiyan, who has worked closely with former chief ministers MGR and Jayalalithaa over the decades, Aadhav Arjuna – considered one of Vijay’s trusted strategists, Raj Mohan – a television and film personality known for his oratory skills, Dr TK Prabhu – a dentist-turned-politician, and S Keerthana – the youngest face in the cabinet.
Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, who administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Vijay and his ministers, had formally invited him to form the government on Saturday night after he submitted letters of support from allied parties. According to an official statement from Lok Bhavan, Vijay informed the Governor about his election as the leader of the TVK Legislature Party.
The invitation came after four days of political uncertainty in the state. Vijay reportedly met the Governor multiple times earlier this week, but an invitation to form the government was delayed as the required numbers were still being verified.
The breakthrough finally came after TVK secured confirmed support from several opposition parties. Senior TVK leaders, including KA Sengottaiyan and Aadhav Arjuna, accompanied Vijay during the final meeting with the Governor. The Vijay-led government must prove its majority before May 13 as directed by the Governor.
Soon after taking oath as the chief minister, Vijay on Sunday resigned from Tiruchirappalli East assembly constituency and has decided to retain the Perambur seat. He was elected from both the seats and was required to vacate one of them.
In another development, TVK MLA Karuppaiah was sworn in as pro-tem Speaker of the 234-member Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly at a small function at the Lok Bhavan in Chennai. Karuppaiah had won from the Sholavandan Assembly constituency in 2026 assembly elections.
The oath to Karuppaiah, who joined the TVK from the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), was administered by Governor Arlekar in the presence of Vijay.
The rest of the MLAs will be sworn in on Monday, and the election of Speaker and Deputy Speaker will take place on Tuesday, the Lok Bhavan said in a release.
Vijay’s rise from one of Tamil cinema’s tallest stars to the state’s top political post has become one of the biggest political stories in recent years. The 51-year-old actor-turned-politician secured the support of 120 MLAs, comfortably crossing the required majority mark of 118 seats in the 234-member Assembly. His victory came after multiple parties extended support to TVK over the last few days.
The political situation in Tamil Nadu changed dramatically after the Congress decided to break away from its alliance with the DMK and support Vijay’s party. Apart from Congress, several other parties also backed TVK, including: Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Communist Party of India (CPI) and Communist Party of India (Marxist). Communist Party of India (Marxist). While these parties supported Vijay to help form the government, they have not officially joined the ruling alliance.
Vijay, who is the chief of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), had contested the 2026 assembly elections from two seats – Tiruchirappalli East and Perambur – and won both of them.
In Tiruchirappalli East, he received 91,381 votes to defeat Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate S Inigo Irudayaraj, who secured 63,965 votes, according to the Election Commission of India (ECI). He also won the Perambur seat against DMK’s RD Shekar. Vijay had received 1,20,365 votes, while Shekar secured 66,650 votes.
Immediately after his swearing in ceremony, Vijay declared in his maiden speech that he will be the sole “power centre” in his government. He further stated that a new era has begun in Tamil Nadu, with focus on social justice.
The actor-turned-politician also unveiled three schemes related to electricity, women’s safety and drug eradication.
“There is only one center here, the center under my leadership. A center on this side, a power center on that side, another power center there – none of that exists, I’m telling you right now,” Vijay said. “I do not hail from any royal lineage, I am like you and I am like one among you, one among your family.”
Vijay, who introduced himself as ‘Thambi’ (younger brother), also sent a message to his political rivals saying whoever plans to “do wrong” and destabilize the government should abandon such ideas. “I will not do wrong and will not let others with me do wrong either. If anyone has wrong ideas, delete them right away,” he said.
Vijay thanked all the DMK allies who supported him to get the ‘magic number’ of 118 to form a government, and referred to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as his “brother.” “I thank Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Parliament my brother Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Selvaperunthagai, and Praveen Chakravarthy, CPM leaders P Shanmugam and Su Venkatesan, VCK leaders Thol Thirumavalavan, Ravikumar, and Vanniarasu, and CPI leader M Veerapandian,” he said. He also thanked all the TVK cadres and “virtual warriors”.
“I will not promise what we cannot deliver, but I now have confidence that we can do anything with you. I request all of you to give me some time. I will gradually fulfill everything I have promised and will sincerely strive to implement them. I will not touch even a single penny of the citizens,” he said.
Congress, CPI(M), VCK, and IUML leaders who have given support to the TVK government formation may take the oath at a later stage after portfolio discussions are completed.
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