Actor-turned-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay is set to become the next Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after securing the support of key political allies and crossing the majority mark in the 234-member Assembly.
The development came after Vijay met Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at Lok Bhavan on Friday to formally stake claim to form the government following the fractured mandate in the recently concluded Assembly elections.
TVK, which emerged as the single-largest party with 108 seats, had fallen short of the majority mark of 118 required to form the government independently. However, with the support of Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), the party has successfully crossed the majority threshold.
While Congress extended support with its five seats, CPI, CPI(M), and VCK — each having won two seats — also backed the Vijay-led party, taking TVK’s tally to 118.
In an official communication, CPI(M) expressed its support for TVK to form the government, while CPI offered “conditional support” in favour of what it termed “stable, secular and democratic governance” in Tamil Nadu.
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Earlier, the Governor had reportedly sought clarity from Vijay regarding the “magic number” required for government formation and asked him to furnish details of legislators supporting TVK’s claim. The delay in inviting TVK to form the government had triggered criticism from party leaders and allies, who accused the Governor of stalling the constitutional process.
Several parties have also urged the Governor to call Vijay to form the government and conduct a floor test in the Legislative Assembly to prove its majority.
But now, with the support of other parties, the TVK touched the majority mark in the assembly.
Meanwhile, Vijay, who contested and won from two constituencies, is expected to retain the Chennai Perambur seat and resign from the Trichy constituency. Following his resignation from one seat, TVK’s effective strength in the Assembly is expected to come down to 117.
The Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, held in a single phase on April 23, marked a major political shift in the state, with Vijay’s TVK breaking the decades-old dominance of the DMK and AIADMK in state politics. (With inputs from ANI)
