A day after actor-politician Vijay’s TVK turned into the single largest party in Tamil Nadu with a stunning surprise show in the Assembly elections, the Congress extended its support to the party. The support was considered a major gain for Vijay’s party, which did not reach a majority in the state despite winning more than 100 seats.
However, Congress support alone still does not give TVK the numbers it needs to breach the threshold in the 243-seat Assembly. Here’s a look at the numbers:
Looking at the numbers, even if the Congress and TVK join forces, their combined tally will not be enough to reach the minimum mandate. Follow live updates on Tamil Nadu government formation.
Limited options before Vijay
Vijay is largely looking at three options to form a TVK-led government. One of them gets support from other parties, and no, Congress will not be enough.
As previously reported by HT, the CPIM, which won two seats, has indicated that it will provide a “creative and critical appreciation” to the next government, as do the CPI and IUML, which have two seats each in Tamil Nadu. Together, the number could then reach 119, safely past the majority mark.
The other option on the table is to form a minority government as TVK is the largest party in Tamil Nadu now. However, the road may be tough for Vijay in this case as his party will have to rely on opposition parties to support the passage of legislation, tests and confidence motions in the state assembly.
TVK can also count on breaking existing coalitions in the southern state, which will happen if the Congress leaves the DMK’s side and becomes an ally of TVK.
There is also speculation that the AIADMK could support TVK. When party spokesperson Kovai Satyan was asked about this possibility, he said Vijay would have to take the first step.
How Vijay’s victories complicate matters
Although TVK is only 10 seats short of a majority, the party actually needs at least 12 additional legislators. This is because of the 108 seats the party got, two of which were won by Vijay – Tiruchirappalli East and Perambur.
According to the rules of the Election Commission, he must vacate one seat, which would reduce the party’s number to 107. Furthermore, the party will elect one president of the assembly, who, once elected, will not vote during the motion of confidence, reducing the effective strength of TVK to 106.
There is no official announcement yet about the formation of an alliance between TVK and Congress. However, Congress leader KC Venugopal on Tuesday said that Vijay has reached out. “The INC is determined that the BJP and its agents should not run the Tamil Nadu government in any way,” Venugopal said, hinting at the Congress’ readiness to support the TVK in Tamil Nadu.
