Vijay to take oath as TN CM on Saturday after clearing numbers test

TVK chief Vijay is set to take oath on Saturday at 11am, most likely at the Lok Bhavan rather than the earlier venue of Nehru Stadium, a source in the party told ET. His swearing in comes after he met the Tamil Nadu governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar for the third time on Friday to stake his claim to form the next government in the state.

The actor-turned-politician's journey to being sworn in as chief minister was filled with twists and turns. It all boiled down to the Left parties and the VCK which finally pledged their support to the TVK, enabling him to breach the majority mark.

The CPI and the CPI(M) released a joint statement on Friday evening where they clarified that they would not join the TVK cabinet and could support the government from the outside. "We will continue to travel with the DMK in the struggle to oppose communal forces and protect the state rights," the Left parties said.


CPI(M) leader U Vasuki too said that the party's support would only extend to the Motion of Confidence.

"Only on the issue of forming the government on Motion of Confidence, we are extending support," she said. "On all other issues, whether it is secularism or people's unity or state rights, whenever those issues come up, we will definitely go with whichever secular party comes with us."

Later in the evening, the VCK by Thol Thirumavalavan also extended support to TVK in forming the next government. The party said the letter supporting the TVK would be given on Saturday morning. However, clarity is yet to emerge on whether the VCK will provide support to the TVK from the outside, like the Left parties or be part of the cabinet.

Earlier in the day, DMK president MK Stalin had urged the governor to take steps to form the new government.

"Forming a new government is not only essential for the elected legislators to take the oath of office and for the State's welfare to continue, but also one of the most important duties of democracy," he said in a post on X. "In these circumstances, in order to avoid any delay in the formation of the government, on behalf of the DMK, I request that the governor immediately initiate the constitutional process to form the new government."

Also, after the dramatic split between the long term allies, the Congress and the DMK, MP of the Dravidian major, Kanimozhi wrote to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, requesting that the seating arrangement of the party's members be changed from their current positions next to their former ally.