Vijay sworn in as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, ends six-decade Dravidian parties dominance

Actor-cum-Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) President C. Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday, marking a historic political shift in the state, which saw an end to nearly six decades of alternating rule by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Vijay at a grand ceremony held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here.

Nine ministers were also sworn in alongside him as part of the new council of ministers.

The event was attended by several national and regional political leaders, including Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, film personalities, party workers, and thousands of supporters, prompting authorities to enforce massive security arrangements in and around the venue.

Chennai city police deployed heavy security, intensified vehicle checks and imposed strict access control measures around the stadium ahead of the ceremony.

Special seating arrangements were made for prominent guests attending the swearing-in function.

In the front row, seats were reserved for Vijay's parents, veteran filmmaker S.A. Chandrasekhar and Shobha Chandrasekhar. Actor Trisha Krishnan and her mother were also allotted seats in the same row, drawing considerable attention from the media and fans gathered at the venue.

Vijay assumes office after the TVK-led alliance secured the support of 120 MLAs in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, comfortably crossing the majority mark of 118 required to form the government.

While the TVK emerged as the single largest party in the recently concluded Assembly elections, it fell short of an outright majority, triggering intense political negotiations over the last few days.

The uncertainty finally ended on Saturday evening after the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) extended their support to the Vijay-led formation.

Earlier, the Congress, the Communist Party of India (CPI), and the Communist Party of India-Marxist had also backed the TVK, enabling the actor-turned-politician to stake claim to form the government.

Following the securing of support, Vijay met Governor Arlekar at Lok Bhavan in Chennai on Saturday night and submitted letters of support from all five allies - the Congress, the CPI, the CPI-M, the VCK, and the IUML. The Governor subsequently appointed Vijay as Chief Minister-designate and invited him to form the ministry. He has also directed the new Chief Minister to seek a vote of confidence in the Assembly on or before May 13.

The swearing-in of Vijay marks a watershed moment in Tamil Nadu politics, as a non-Dravidian party has come to power in the state for the first time since 1967. Political observers view the development as a major realignment in the state's political landscape, long dominated by the DMK and AIADMK.

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) Chief C. Joseph Vijay was on Saturday officially invited by the Governor-in-charge Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to form the next government in Tamil Nadu after demonstrating majority support in the 234-member Assembly.

In a major political development that ended days of uncertainty following the fractured Assembly verdict, Vijay met the Governor at Lok Bhavan in Chennai and submitted a letter informing him of his election as the leader of the TVK Legislature Party.

He also handed over letters of support from the Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).

Following the meeting, Raj Bhavan issued an official statement confirming that Governor Arlekar had appointed Vijay as the Chief Minister-designate of Tamil Nadu and invited him to form the Ministry.

The Governor also directed the TVK Chief to seek a vote of confidence in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on or before May 13.

Raj Bhavan also announced that the swearing-in ceremony would be held at Chennai's Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium at 10 a.m. on Sunday.

The development came after Vijay successfully secured the support of 120 MLAs, comfortably crossing the majority mark of 118 required to form the government in the 234-member Assembly.

According to the final tally, the TVK-led formation has the support of 107 TVK MLAs, five Congress legislators, and two MLAs each from the CPI, CPI(M), VCK, and IUML.

Tamil Nadu went to polls for all 234 Assembly constituencies in a single phase on April 23.

The election witnessed an intense four-cornered contest involving the DMK, the AIADMK alliance, Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK), and the newly launched TVK led by actor-turned-politician Vijay.

The results, declared on May 4, saw TVK emerge as the single-largest party with 108 seats.

However, after Vijay decided to retain only one of the two Assembly constituencies from which he had contested and won, the party's effective strength came down to 107.

In the days following the poll verdict, hectic political activity unfolded in Chennai as the TVK initiated discussions with multiple parties to garner support for government formation.

The CPI and CPI-M were among the first to extend support, followed later by the Congress, VCK, and IUML.

Celebrations erupted among TVK cadres across Tamil Nadu soon after the Governor's announcement, with party workers gathering outside the party headquarters in Chennai, bursting crackers and distributing sweets as Vijay prepared to become the state's next Chief Minister.

(With inputs from IANS)