60-year exile ends: CM Vijay inducts Congress into cabinet as TN embraces coalition governance

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay expanded his Cabinet on Thursday by inducting 23 new ministers, bringing the total strength of the council of ministers to 32. Under constitutional mandates, the Tamil Nadu Cabinet can accommodate a maximum of 35 ministers, representing 15% of the total assembly strength.

Key highlights of the expansion

• TVK Dominance: Out of the 23 newly sworn-in ministers, 21 belong to the ruling Tamil Vetri Kazhagam (TVK).
• Congress's Historic Return: The expansion marks a historic milestone for the Congress party, which returns to the state government after nearly 60 years. Congress MLAs Rajesh Kumar and P. Viswanathan took the oath of office today.
• Allies on Hold: Key allies including the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK)—who currently support the government from the outside—have not yet joined the Cabinet. Although one ministerial berth has been allocated to each party, they are yet to finalise their nominees.

The TVK leadership is reportedly pressing its allies, including the VCK, CPI, CPM, and IUML, to officially join the coalition government. Political analysts view this expansion as a strategic move that will provide much-needed stability to the Vijay-led administration, which originally assumed office on May 10 with just nine ministers.

The Congress party last governed the state (then Madras State) from 1952 to 1967. Its rule ended in 1967 when the DMK, led by C.N. Annadurai, defeated the Congress to form the government.

In the subsequent decades, despite forming various electoral alliances with both the DMK and the AIADMK, the Congress was consistently kept out of power-sharing agreements. A notable bid to enter the Cabinet during the DMK regime between 2006 and 2011 had also proved unsuccessful.

In the recent assembly elections, the Congress contested as an ally of the DMK and secured five seats. However, in a swift post-poll realignment, the party broke ties with the DMK to back the TVK.

With Vijay's TVK falling short of an absolute majority in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, the support of the Congress has emerged as a crucial lifeline for the survival and stability of the current government.