- Vijay's TVK lacks majority, secured support from Congress, Left, VCK, and IUML
- 24 AIADMK MLAs defied party whip to back Vijay in trust vote, prompting action
- The CPM has said would rethink support if AIADMK joins Vijay's coalition, citing mandate breach
Actor-politician Vijay's government in Tamil Nadu is yet to be 10 days old, but its wafer-thin majority has sparked concern about its stability. The matter was brought under focus again today as one of its allies, the CPM, said it would "reconsider support" to the government if the AIADMK gains entry into the coalition.
Answering a hypothetical question from the media today about AIADMK MLAs joining the coalition, the CPM said making any AIADMK faction part of the TVK government is against the people's mandate, which has given a big thumbs down to the DMK and the AIADMK.
The AIADMK's presence in the coalition will also be against the TVK promise of clean governance, it said.
"We are supporting the TVK as Tamil Nadu is not ready for another poll and we don't want the BJP make a rear entry through Governor's rule," the CPM said.
Read: Vijay Meets AIADMK 'Rebels' As EPS Rival Shanmugam Says "Ready To Back TVK"
Vijay's TVK, while scoring an unprecedented victory that blew apart the decades-old binary politics of Tamil Nadu, did not have majority after the results were announced May 4. The TVK had swept 108 of 234 seats - 10 short of the majority mark.
After days of negotiations and political drama that could put a Bollywood thriller to shame, the TVK received support from the Congress, which won five seats, and eight more from the Left front, the VCK and the Indian Union Muslim League or IUML.
The trust vote held on May 13 was the sequel that packed in the bigger punch - leaving a vertical rift within the AIADMK open to public scrutiny.
Vijay was backed by 144 lawmakers - 24 of them from the AIADMK, who were in favour of backing him since the beginning but got vetoed by party chief E Palaniswami. On the day of the trust vote, they ignored the party whip and voted for Vijay. It has led the party to take action, including invoking the anti-defection law.
Read: Vijay Wins Floor Test With 144 Votes, 24 AIADMK MLAs Vote For Him
But their support, given the CPM reaction, has not brought much joy in the ruling coalition, especially in view of Vijay's meeting with the AIADMK rebels ahead of the trust vote.
The CPM and the VCK, like the Congress, have been part of the alliance led by MK Stalin's DMK. But the smaller parties have decided to stick with the DMK even while lending outside support to Vijay. The Congress ended ties with the DMK and decided to support the TVK.
Their decision, the smaller parties made clear, was based on avoiding a re-election and keeping the BJP -- and its ally AIADMK -- out of power in the state.
