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In his maiden public address after becoming the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) founder-president C Joseph Vijay on Monday, June 1, denied allegations of horse-trading and accused the Opposition of spreading false rumours.
“We are working for the people, but allegations are being made about horse-trading of MLAs and false information is being spread. With the support we have received from the people, we have no need for such politics,” Vijay said while addressing a gathering of TVK members in Trichy, which will soon go to a bye-election.
His remarks come amid allegations following the resignation of four All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) MLAs — K Maragatham Kumaravel (Madurantakam), P Sathyabama (Dharapuram), S Jayakumar (Perundurai), and C Isakki Subbaiah (Ambasamudram) — who later joined TVK.
Targeting the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) for not giving his government enough time to settle into office, Vijay said, “Only a few weeks have passed since I assumed office, yet those who claimed they would remain silent for six months could not remain silent even for six days.”
Speaking about the rise in criminal cases under the TVK government, Vijay blamed the previous government for allegedly allowing the drug menace to spread across the state.
“The DMK and ‘others’ [referring to the AIADMK] are speaking about law and order now. But during the DMK regime, drug-related problems spread through the streets of districts across the state. If they had acted in the initial stages, would we have reached a situation where children and women are being affected? Instead, they are dumping the blame on me,” he said.
The Chief Minister said his government had already initiated measures to address law and order concerns, including appointing efficient police officers and launching the “Singappen Force” next week.
He added that directions had been issued to expedite the filing of charge sheets in criminal cases to ensure quicker court proceedings and punishment.
CM Vijay also took aim at DMK president and former Chief Minister M K Stalin for regularly making statements about the issues persisting in Tamil Nadu.
The bye-election in the Trichy East constituency was necessitated after Vijay resigned as its MLA while retaining the Perambur seat. Speaking about the electoral contest, Vijay said the primary contest was between TVK and the DMK. He also blamed Stalin’s family-centric politics for the DMK’s failure in the recent elections. In his latest barb against the DMK, he termed the party as “Theendhu pona Sakthi” (an exhausted power). Previously, he used to refer to them as “Theeya Sakthi” (Evil power).
Recalling his party’s stupendous success in its debut election, Vijay said TVK had broken every conventional electoral norm, including caste, religion, and cash-for-votes equations.
“Many say that even Puratchi Thalaivar MGR did not secure such a high vote share in his first election, but you have supported TVK immensely. I am not comparing myself with MGR. But we both follow the path laid down by Periyar and Anna and work for the people in a humble manner.”
He appealed to voters to support TVK in the upcoming Trichy East bye-election.
Speaking about the political transformation he had brought among young people, Chief Minister Vijay said public engagement with politics had increased under his government. He stated that people who once spent time watching social media reels were now following news and Assembly proceedings more closely.
