CPM State Secretary P Shanmugam on Thursday (May 7) urged Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to immediately invite TVK president C Joseph Vijay to form the government, stating that the party had emerged as the single largest party in the Assembly elections.
In a statement, Shanmugam said the people of Tamil Nadu had not given a mandate to any party or alliance to independently form the government in the recently concluded Assembly elections. However, by electing 108 MLAs from TVK, the electorate had made the party the single largest formation in the Assembly, he said.
VCK president Thol Thirumavalavan on Thursday said the Governor should immediately invite TVK president C Joseph Vijay to form the government, arguing that the Constitution mandates that the single largest party be given the first opportunity to prove its majority on the floor of the Assembly.
Addressing reporters, the VCK president said the TVK had emerged as the “single largest party” in the Assembly elections and therefore Vijay should be sworn in as Chief Minister.
Amid uncertainty over the swearing-in ceremony, with the party falling short of the majority mark, TVK president and Chief Minister-elect C Joseph Vijay has convened a meeting of all 106 MLAs-elect at the party headquarters in Panaiyur at 10 am on Thursday (May 7).
Vijay is expected to hold detailed discussions with the newly elected legislators on the next course of action amid the evolving political situation and the ongoing efforts to secure the numbers required to form the government.
Actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) president Kamal Haasan on Thursday said refusing to invite actor C Joseph Vijay-led TVK, which had won 108 seats, to form the government would amount to disrespecting the mandate of the people of Tamil Nadu.
In a statement, he said the people of Tamil Nadu had not given any party a clear mandate to form the government on its own in the Assembly elections, and described the verdict as unprecedented in the State’s political history.
CPI State Secretary M. Veerapandian on Thursday urged Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to act in accordance with the Constitution and provide Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) an opportunity to prove its majority on the floor of the Assembly.
In a statement, Veerapandian said the verdict in the Assembly elections held on April 23 did not provide any single party with a clear mandate to independently form the government. However, the voters had elected TVK as the single largest party by giving it 108 seats.
Deadlock continues in government formation in Tamil Nadu, with Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Thursday insisting that TVK chief C Joseph Vijay provide letters of support from 118 MLA-elects to prove a clear majority in the 234-member House before agreeing to proceed with the proposed swearing-in ceremony.
Earlier today, after Vijay met Arlekar for a second time in two days, sources within the TVK had claimed that the Governor was satisfied with Vijay’s assurances on numbers and invited him to form the government.
More than two decades ago, there I was, a film journalist, very reluctantly attending an event where he was celebrating Pongal with fans. It was held at an open ground, with a number of women preparing pongal.
It was very much like a film set. But the main attraction, a professional actor no less, was not role-playing; he brought a genuine warmth in his interactions with all. He was not angling for much publicity for the event. But he requested me to write on leukaemia and other medical issues affecting the young. “I saw my own sister suffer,” he said.
The decision of the Indian National Congress (INC) to extend support to the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in the post-poll scenario has revived memories of a similar political development that took place more than seven decades ago in Tamil Nadu.
After Independence, the then Madras State faced its first Assembly election in 1951-52. In that election, the Congress party failed to secure a clear majority on its own. It later formed the government with the support of the Commonweal Party led by Vanniyar leader MA Manickavelu.
The already turbulent politics in Tamil Nadu seems to have entered uncharted waters on Wednesday after multiple sources claimed that the DMK has extended support for arch rival Edappadi K Palaniswami’s AIADMK to lead the next government, and him as chief minister, to thwart any attempt by TVK leader C Joseph Vijay from coming to power.
Vijay’s party, which ended nearly six decades of Dravidian rule to emerge the biggest party with 108 seats on its own (including Vijay from two seats) and also secured the support of Congress’s 5 MLA-elects, is still 6 seats short of simple majority (118). On the other hand, the DMK (59) and AIADMK (47) have 106 seats. Their allies have 14 seats – PMK has 4; CPM, CPI, VCK, IUML have 2 each, and AMMK and BJP have 1 each – from which the Dravidian combine would require 12.