Vijay writes to governor staking claim, may run minority govt

'If a floor test happens, one group of MLAs may abstain to allow the confidence vote to pass. So theoretically, he can run a minority government as long as the others won't join each other to vote him out.'

With Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam emerging as the single largest party in the assembly polls, the focus has now shifted to government formation in Tamil Nadu.

As the TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member legislative assembly, just short of a majority, Vijay wrote to Lok Bhavan staking a claim to form the government.

He informed the governor that the party had secured 108 seats, and being the single largest party, it should be invited to form the government.

"We request an opportunity to demonstrate our majority," Vijay had said in an e-mail communication to Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, a source in the TVK said.

Governor's Decision On Government Formation

An official said the governor is likely to consult legal experts before inviting Vijay to form the government, as no party has secured a clear majority in the election held on April 23.

The TVK source added that the party had sought two weeks to prove its majority on the floor of the House.

Meanwhile, a heavy posse of police has been deployed outside the Panaiyur residence of Vijay, who had won from both Perambur and Tiruchirappalli East assembly constituencies. He is likely to retain Perambur in Chennai.

Political Analysis And Potential Scenarios

"Vijay does not need to form a majority government. He can be invited by the governor to form the government and take a floor test and dare the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and All India Anna DMK to vote him out," said commentator and political analyst Sumanth Raman.

"They (DMK and AIADMK) wouldn't dare do this for now. I guess that if a floor test happens, one group of MLAs may abstain to allow the confidence vote to pass. So theoretically, he can run a minority government as long as the others won't join each other to vote him out," Raman said in a post on 'X.'

Congress's Reaction To TVK's Victory

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi spoke to Vijay and congratulated him on "TVK's spectacular result".

"This mandate reflects the rising voice of youth, which cannot, and will not, be ignored. My heartfelt thanks to the Congress workers of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for their hard work and support. I reiterate that the Congress party will continue to protect and serve the people of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry," the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said on 'X.'

Congress leader in charge of Tamil Nadu, Girish Chodankar, said the poll result was "unexpected".

"Overall, our performance was not very good, considering our CM also lost the election. It was not expected. The wave was in favour of TVK. The people of the state have voted for a change, and youngsters and women have clearly voted for the government of TVK. Somehow youngsters have been attracted to them, and they got the mandate of people," Chodankar told PTI videos.