Tamil Nadu’s new government led by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) was sworn in on Saturday at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai. Party leader Vijay took oath as the Chief Minister in a grand ceremony attended by political leaders, family members and supporters.
Governor Arlekar administered the oath. Vijay, who took the oath invoking God, introduced himself as “Joseph Vijay”, triggering loud slogans and whistles from the packed venue.
Ahead of the ceremony, Vijay travelled from his Neelankarai residence to the stadium under tight security. Supporters lined the route to greet him, and he acknowledged them by waving from his vehicle before being welcomed at the venue with a bouquet.
In a first for a Tamil Nadu cabinet swearing-in, “Vande Mataram” was sung during the ceremony, according to reports. Along with the Chief Minister, Sengottaiyan, Anand, Aadhav Arjuna, Arunraj, Nirmalkumar, Venkataramanan, Rajmohan, Prabhu and Keerthana were sworn in as ministers.
Among those present were Congress Lok Sabha opposition leader Rahul, Vijay’s parents Chandrasekhar and Shoba, actor Trisha, CPM state secretary Shanmugam and CPI state secretary Veerappandian. VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan also conveyed greetings to Vijay ahead of the swearing-in.
