Tamil Nadu govt formation LIVE: TVK chief Vijay arrives at Lok Bhavan to meet Governor again

Actor Prakash Raj slammed Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Thursday for not letting TVK chief Vijay form government in the state.

Taking to X, Raj called Arlekar’s behaviour “unacceptable” and “unconstitutional.”

“This Governor s behaviour is Disgusting .. unacceptable and unconstitutional. We may have differences … but Vijay has got the mandate . He should be allowed to claim his right on the floor of the house. #justasking”

Tamil Nadu govt formation LIVE: Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde on legal issues in the formation of government in Tamil Nadu, says, “There is no question of the Governor first ascertaining whether a person has a majority inside the Raj Bhawan, and then asking for that majority to be proved again on the floor of the House. The only place to test a majority is the floor of the House. There have been many instances in the functioning of the Indian Republic and its Constitution, where parties without a majority have stake claim, have been invited to form a government, and thereafter they have gone on to prove their majority on the floor of the House or to fall on the floor of the House. Your viewers may remember that that Atal Bihari Vajpayee was invited by the President to form a government, when the BJP was the single largest party. Despite the fact that there were other parties who possibly had a majority, and Vajpayee was invited. He became Prime Minister for 13 days. He fell on the floor of the House, and thereafter a new government was formed. Majorities are not tested in the Raj Bhavan or in the Rashtrapati Bhavan.”

TVK founder Vijay has called a crucial meeting of his party’s MLAs-designate to discuss government formation.

Tamil Nadu govt formation LIVE: TVK chief Vijay arrives at Lok Bhavan to meet Governor again amid government formation suspense. Other top leadership of TVK has accompanied Vijay to meet Governor Arlekar.

The second round of meetings between Vijay and Tamil Nadu governor comes a day after when the TVK chief staked a claim to form government in the state. The development took place after the Tamil Nadu Congress confirmed its post-poll alliance with TVK.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Unaware of cancellation, TVK supporters who arrived at Nehru Stadium for Vijay’s swearing-in ceremony, left disappointed.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Metal detectors removed from TVK chief Vijay’s residence as security deployment scaled down. Police officials present outside the residence.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief Vijay could meet Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at 11 AM today, ANI reported citing sources.

Tamil Nadu news LIVE: TVK chief Vijay declined to accept the police convoy vehicles provided to Tamil Nadu chief minister as per protocol until his swearing-in, the party said on Thursday.

A police official confirmed that the CM convoy vehicles provided to him “as per protocol” following the announcement of the Assembly election results were returned and have not been withdrawn.

The official also said that arrangements were in place for the swearing-in ceremony.

The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) clarified that its party founder Vijay had “personally requested that the convoy vehicles be returned”. In a statement here, the TVK said: “Vijay conveyed that he would accept the official chief minister-level security only after forming the government with a decisive mandate”.

Tamil Nadu news LIVE: Fan offers prayers outside TVK chief Vijay’s house, expresses hope of seeing him as the chief minister.

“He will definitely become the Chief Minister. The news channels may say many things, but without a doubt, he is the one who will take the position. No matter how many obstacles come his way, he will face them and move forward. I feel deeply hurt. There is not even a single police officer here. I don’t even know what to say. It’s a strange feeling altogether. After struggling so much to come this far, it is painful to see such people doing these kinds of things,” he said.

Tamil Nadu news LIVE: MK Stalin said on Wednesday that he will “not disturb” if TVK chief actor Vijay forms government after shock electoral victory. Speaking to Times of India, the DMK Supreme said “let Vijay form government.”

Stalin said he expects the new govt to continue the schemes introduced by his regime, besides fulfilling the promises TVK has made in its election manifesto.

“The new govt should continue with the free breakfast scheme for school children,” he said when asked what tops his priority list. “And ‘Kalaignar magalir urimai thogai’ ( ₹1,000 monthly allowance to women heads of households).”

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: In India, governors usually call the single-largest party to form the government if no single party or pre-poll alliance crosses the halfway mark, as happened in Maharashtra in 2019. However, there is no law for such scenarios and the Constitution leaves it to the governor’s discretion.

Legal expert Vijayan Subramanian said the governor created “confusion”. “In SR Bommai versus Union of India, the Supreme Court categorically held that the question of majority must ordinarily be tested only on the floor of the legislative assembly and not through the Governor’s personal or subjective assessment,” he said.

Subramanian added that insisting an elected leader first parade or individually demonstrate support before the governor, without a floor test, could contradict the constitutional principles laid down by the Supreme Court.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Security outside TVK leader Vijay’s residence scaled down.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: The half-way mark in Tamil Nadu is 118, and there are many combinations that can arrive at this number. Late on Wednesday evening, social media was buzzing with rumours on various alliances that would achieve this number, including an improbable combination of arch-rivals DMK and AIADMK, though DMK spokesperson A Saravanan denied the reports to news channel Times Now.

Congress has extended its support, taking the tally to 113.

Vijay contested from two seats and won both. The 51-year-old has to resign from one seat within 14 days of the election result being notified.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay met Tamil Nadu governor Rajendra Arlekar on Wednesday to stake claim to power but wasn’t invited to form the next government as officials said Lok Bhavan was seeking legal opinion to ensure the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) commanded a majority.

On Wednesday, Vijay submitted a list of TVK and Congress lawmakers who pledged support, said leaders in the Tamil Nadu Congress who asked not to be named. But Lok Bhavan officials indicated that a formal decision on inviting Vijay to form the government and holding the swearing-in ceremony had not yet been made. The officials added that the governor was also seeking legal opinion.

“The governor wants to be sure that Vijay has the support of a majority of MLAs,” an official said on the condition of anonymity. Lok Bhavan did not officially respond to HT’s queries on why Vijay was not invited.

Tamil Nadu government formation news LIVE: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief Vijay, who according to sources was set to take oath as CM on May 7, Thursday, is unlikely to do so. The actor-turned politician is firming up support to cross the majority mark in the Tamil Nadu assembly, sources said on Wednesday.