Daijiworld Media Network – Chennai
Chennai, May 9: Actor-politician Vijay has crossed the crucial majority mark required to form the government in Tamil Nadu after the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) extended unconditional support to his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), on Saturday.
With the latest support, Vijay now enjoys the backing of 121 MLAs, comfortably crossing the 118-member majority mark needed in the 234-member Assembly.
The development comes after days of intense political uncertainty following the Assembly election results, in which the two-year-old TVK stunned political observers by emerging as the single largest party with 108 seats, overtaking both the DMK and AIADMK.
However, Vijay’s effective strength stood at 107 as he is expected to vacate one of the two constituencies from which he won.
The Congress party, which secured five seats, was among the first to extend support to the TVK after ending its long-standing alliance with the DMK. The Left parties, with four MLAs, also backed Vijay on Friday.
Political suspense continued until Saturday morning as both the VCK and IUML initially delayed their support. Reports suggested that VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan was unhappy over the manner in which support was sought by the TVK leadership.
Following fresh discussions between TVK leaders and the VCK and IUML leadership, both parties formally extended their support, paving the way for Vijay to stake claim to form the government.
While extending unconditional support, VCK leaders indicated that discussions regarding participation in the government would be held later. Party leaders also reportedly expressed their desire for Thirumavalavan to contest from the seat Vijay is expected to vacate and eventually assume the role of Deputy Chief Minister.
The post-poll political developments had triggered widespread speculation in the state, including rumours of a possible understanding between traditional rivals DMK and AIADMK to prevent Vijay from coming to power. However, smaller parties eventually rallied behind the TVK.
Over the past three days, Vijay met Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on three separate occasions to stake claim to form the government. However, he was initially unable to prove majority support.
The situation became more complicated on Friday after AMMK MLA Kamaraj’s support letter sparked controversy. While Vijay submitted the letter to the Governor, AMMK general secretary TTV Dhinakaran later alleged that the MLA’s signature had been forged and reaffirmed his party’s support to the NDA.
The TVK subsequently released a video purportedly showing the MLA extending support to Vijay, but the confusion briefly left the party short of the required numbers.
With the VCK and IUML now officially backing the TVK, the final hurdle has been cleared, setting the stage for Vijay to become the next Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.