Vijay moves to stake claim in Tamil Nadu
After becoming the largest party with 108 MLAs, Vijay’s Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has started exploring options to gain a majority in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly. Specifically, to attain a simple majority, TVK need to get at least 10 MLAs to reach the 118 mark. Moreover, Vjay has won from two constituencies, Perambur in Chennai and Tiruchirappalli East and within six months, he has to vacate one of the seats.
According TVK leaders, after meeting MLAs and senior leaders on Tuesday morning, Vijay contacted Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar (who is also Governor of Kerala) by email and is expected to visit the Lok Bhavan on Wednesday to stake a claim. Vijay is expected to assure the Governor that he will prove majority in Assembly. The governor may seek letters from supporting parties before swearing-in, the party leaders said. They also said Vijay may surrender the Tiruchirappalli seat.
Adding to the number games, TVK appointed Speaker of the Assembly will be ineligible to cast a vote during a confidence motion and the party’s effective voting strength will be reduced by yet another seat, which comes to 106.
Accordingly, the TVK requires the support of an additional 12 members to demonstrate its majority. As of now, within the DMK alliance, the Congress party has secured five seats, the two Communist parties have won two seats each (totaling four), while the DMDK has secured one seat, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has won two seats and the VCK has secured two seats.
Within the AIADMK alliance, the PMK has grabbed four seats, the BJP has won one seat, and the AMMK has secured one seat. Going by the calculations, if TVK gets the support of parties within both alliances, it would gain an additional 21 seats, taking its tally to 129 seats. However, the TVK does not require the support of all those parties, and the backing of just 12 members would suffice. TVK may get outside support from other parties, which opt out from voting in the Assembly.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday spoke to Vijay and expected to support him the floor test. PMK with four members are expected to support Vijay.
