Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay comfortably won the vote of confidence in the state assembly, securing backing from the Congress, smaller allied parties, and a faction of AIADMK MLAs.
A total of 144 MLAs voted in favour of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government, while 22 legislators voted against. The opposition DMK staged a walkout and abstained from voting, while the BJP, with its lone MLA, remained neutral. Anbumani Ramadoss-led PMK also abstained from voting.
Also read
Support for the Vijay government came from the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), CPI and CPI(M). MLA S. Kamaraj, recently expelled from AMMK, was also among those who voted in favour of the government.
Notably, at least 24 AIADMK MLAs voted in favour, signalling a virtual split within the party led by Edappadi K. Palaniswami. The rebel faction, led by senior leaders S.P. Velumani and C. Ve Shanmugam, had earlier accused Palaniswami of pursuing an alliance with the DMK.
Earlier, Chief Minister Vijay moved a resolution seeking the confidence vote, with floor leaders of the respective parties allowed to speak first. The vote was held in accordance with Governor R.V. Arlekar’s directions to conduct the confidence motion on or before May 13.
The ruling TVK has an overall strength of 107, including the Speaker, who may not vote. However, the party’s Tirupattur MLA, R. Seenivasa Sethupathy, was unable to cast his vote due to a High Court ruling in a case filed by his rival DMK candidate, who had lost to him by a single vote in the recent assembly elections.