Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated C Joseph Vijay after he took oath as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on Sunday, pairing a message of cooperation with a sharp political attack on the Congress over its decision to back the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam government after years of partnership with the DMK.
Modi said the Centre would continue to work with the Tamil Nadu government to improve people’s lives, signalling that administrative engagement with Chennai would not be disrupted by the altered political landscape. His message came hours after Vijay, the actor-turned-politician who built TVK into a major force within two years, assumed office at a high-profile ceremony that marked the end of uninterrupted DMK-AIADMK dominance in the state’s power structure.
The Prime Minister’s conciliatory note towards the new Chief Minister was accompanied by a combative swipe at the Congress, which he described as “backstabber” and “parasitic” for moving towards Vijay’s camp after having long depended on the DMK as a crucial ally. Modi said the DMK had helped the Congress through difficult phases, including the years before 2014, and accused the party of abandoning its partner when political circumstances changed.
The attack is aimed at exposing strains within the opposition bloc after Tamil Nadu delivered a fractured verdict. TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member Assembly, emerging as the single largest party but falling short of the 118-seat majority mark. The DMK finished with 59 seats, the AIADMK with 47, while Congress won five. Smaller parties, including the CPI, CPI, VCK and IUML, each became important in the post-poll arithmetic.
Vijay secured letters of support from Congress, CPI, CPI, VCK and IUML, taking the number of legislators backing him to 120, two above the majority threshold. The arrangement allows TVK to form the government but leaves the new Chief Minister dependent on a narrow coalition in a state where political mandates have usually been more decisive.
Congress’s shift has become the central flashpoint. The party had contested the election as part of the DMK-led alignment but moved to support Vijay once TVK emerged as the strongest claimant to power. DMK leaders have viewed the move as a breach of trust, arguing that Congress benefited from the alliance during the campaign before changing sides after the verdict.
Vijay used his first address to reassure supporters and allies that he would run a stable government. He said there would be no competing centre of authority in the administration and thanked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, K C Venugopal, Tamil Nadu Congress chief K Selvaperunthagai, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan and Left leaders for enabling TVK to cross the majority mark.
The new Chief Minister also moved quickly to signal his governance priorities. His first orders included approval for 200 units of free electricity for domestic consumers, the creation of a women’s safety force and anti-drug units in every district. He also announced that his government would release a white paper on Tamil Nadu’s finances for the 2021-2026 period, claiming the outgoing DMK government had left a debt burden of Rs 10 lakh crore.
Those decisions show that Vijay is attempting to combine welfare politics with an anti-corruption and transparency pitch. His message is calibrated for a broad electorate: young voters attracted by his political debut, welfare beneficiaries wary of disruption, and smaller allies looking for ideological reassurance against both the AIADMK and BJP.
For Modi, the moment offers an opportunity to pressure Congress without appearing hostile to the new government. By promising cooperation with Tamil Nadu while attacking Congress, he has sought to separate federal governance from partisan confrontation. The BJP has only one seat in the Assembly, but its national leadership is treating the churn in Tamil Nadu as politically significant because it has unsettled old alliances and opened space for new equations.
