- Vijay sworn in as Tamil Nadu's first non-DMK and AIADMK Chief Minister in nearly 60 years
- Nine TVK leaders took oath as cabinet ministers alongside Vijay in Chennai
- TVK won 108 of 234 seats in recent assembly elections, but fell short of a majority
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president Vijay on Sunday took the oath as the new Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, giving the southern state its first non-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and non-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government in nearly 60 years.
Vijay, 51, was sworn in at a fully packed Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai, with his parents -- SA Chandrasekhar and Shobha, top actor Trisha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in attendance.
Nine TVK leaders also took oath as Vijay's cabinet ministers, including veteran leader KA Sengottaiyan, who joined the actor-politician's party after being expelled from the AIADMK. The others who took the oath alongside Vijay were Aadhav Arjuna, considered one of Vijay's trusted strategists; CTR Nirmal Kumar, a former BJP functionary who won from Thiruparankundram in Madurai; 'Bussy' Anand, the TVK's general secretary; RajMohan, a television and film personality; KT Prabhu, a dentist-turned-politician who secured victory from Karaikudi; Arunraaj, a former Indian Revenue Service officer; P Venkataramanan, the Chennai's Mylapore MLA; and 28-year-old S Keerthana, the youngest face in the cabinet.
The TVK, which was formed just two years ago, made a blockbuster debut in the last month's assembly elections and won 108 of the state's 234 seats. The party, however, failed to get the majority mark of 118.
Vijay then held multiple rounds of coalition talks with potential partners and met the governor, Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, four times to prove that he has numbers to form the government.
How Vijay Formed Government
Vijay received support from the Congress, a DMK ally which has five MLAs, and met the governor on Wednesday, staking claim to form the government. He, however, was told that he was short of the majority mark.
After holding discussions with other parties, he met the governor again on Thursday but failed to prove that he has the numbers to form the government.
On Friday, Vijay received the support of the two Left parties, the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M), that have two seats each.
Since Vijay was elected from two constituencies and will have to vacate one seat, the alliance's total stood at 116, two short of the magic number required for a simple majority.
Vijay met the governor again for the third straight day on Friday but couldn't fulfil his condition of providing written support of at least 118 MLAs.
The most significant shot in the arm for Vijay came on Saturday, when DMK allies, the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), announced that they will back the TVK, taking the tally of the coalition to 120.
Vijay, on Saturday evening, rushed to the Lok Bhavan (governor's official residence) and presented Arlekar letters from parties pledging unconditional support. The governor was convinced after about an hour-long talk and appointed Vijay as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. Vijay, however, has to seek the vote of confidence on or before May 13.
Vijay's Journey From Film To Politics
Born on June 22, 1974, in Chennai (then Madras), Vijay first appeared on screen as a child artiste in Vetri (1984), a Vijayakanth-starrer directed by his father, SA Chandrasekhar.
In 1992, he made his debut as a lead actor in 'Naalaiya Theerpu' at the age of 18. The next year, he appeared in his second movie, 'Sendhoorapandi', as Vijayakanth's younger brother.
Vijay got the title of 'Thalapathy' when his family introduced the promotional title "Ilaya Thalapathy" (Young Commander) for his third film, 'Rasigan', in 1994.
He then went on to give blockbuster films like 'Thuppakki' (2012), 'Kaththi' (2014), 'Mersal' (2017), 'Bigil' (2019), and 'Leo' (2023).
He quit the film industry and entered politics with the launch of his party, the TVK, in 2024.
