Thalapathy Vijay was sworn in as the 13th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu by Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at JN Indoor Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai — in the presence of over 50,000 supporters and national leaders including Rahul Gandhi. Nine ministers were sworn in alongside him. The ceremony ended 59 years of DMK–AIADMK alternation in Tamil Nadu's highest office.
Read the full story: Vijay sworn in as 13th CM · Governor Arlekar administers the oath
The 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly's first formal sitting. All newly elected MLAs were sworn in as Members of the Legislative Assembly. J.C.D. Prabhakar (TVK, Aruppukkottai) was then elected as the 15th Speaker unopposed, and M. Ravisankar (TVK) as Deputy Speaker. On the same day, CM Vijay issued G.O. No.7 ordering the closure of 717 TASMAC outlets near schools, temples and bus stands within 14 days.
Read the full story: JCD Prabhakar elected 15th Speaker · Udhayanidhi Stalin as Leader of the Opposition
The TVK government passed its confidence motion with 144 MLAs voting in favour — far exceeding the majority mark of 116. The 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs crossing party lines were decisive. CM Vijay addressed the Assembly in his first speech as Chief Minister, laying out the government's priorities: social justice, anti-corruption, federalism and NEET scrapping.
Note: TVK's voting strength counted as 105, not 108 — CM Vijay vacated Tiruchirappalli East, the Speaker does not vote, and one TVK MLA faced a temporary court order (later stayed by Supreme Court). The 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs were decisive in securing a comfortable majority.
Read the full story: TVK wins the floor test 144–22
The First Regular Session of the 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly commenced on June 18, 2026 — over a month after the TVK government was sworn in. Governor Rajendra Arlekar delivered the Governor's Address to the joint sitting of both Houses, outlining the TVK government's policy priorities and governance agenda. The address formally set the legislative calendar for the session and provided the framework for subsequent budget and policy debates.
Read the full story: The June sessions in full
Day 2 of the First Regular Session. The House continued legislative business including the Governor's Address debate. CM Vijay personally moved a resolution condemning Karnataka's Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir project — passed unanimously with support from all parties including DMK, CPI, CPM, MDMK and PMK. This came days after the Supreme Court dismissed TN's review petition as premature.
Read the full story: Unanimous Mekedatu resolution
The First Regular Session concluded on June 23 with CM Vijay delivering his first detailed, comprehensive speech in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. In his reply to the full Opposition debate on the Motion of Thanks to the Governor's Address, CM Vijay directly responded to critics who had dismissed TVK as an "actors' party" — asserting that the people's mandate answered that criticism. He reiterated his government's commitment to transparency, accountability and democratic governance, and responded to Opposition concerns on law and order, women's safety, power supply, Cauvery dispute procedure and industrial safety.
Read the full article: CM Vijay's First Assembly Speech →
Read the full story: Tiruvallur ammonia leak debate · Speaker clears the CM’s gesture
The 17th Assembly's first full Monsoon Session produced the TVK government's maiden Budget, the Agriculture Budget, five resolutions, major welfare announcements and several heated exchanges between CM Vijay and Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin. A record of every sitting day.
₹44,527 Cr for school education · Vetri Laptop Scheme ₹2,000 Cr · Vettri Veedu housing ₹3,500 Cr · Annan Seer Thittam ₹812 Cr · Arivagam AI city · Space Industrial Investment Zone at Thoothukudi · $1.5 trillion economy target by 2036.
₹17,000 Cr crop loans · 125 lakh MT food-grain target · Soil Conservation Mission ₹122.51 Cr · Kuruvai Special Package ₹134.83 Cr · Millet Mission ₹63.81 Cr · Crop insurance ₹648.55 Cr for 15 lakh farmers.
Vijay told the Assembly he was prepared to face humiliation for Tamil Nadu's rights and would pursue every legal avenue on Cauvery. Opposition questioned his meeting with Karnataka CM Shivakumar. Letters to PM on VB-GRAMG burden and NEET also sent this week.
Every party in the House — TVK, DMK, AIADMK, Congress, PMK, VCK, CPI, BJP, IUML — backed the resolution mandating Tamil Thai Vazhthu first at all government functions. Speaker: "no permission from anyone." DMK MLA Govi Chezhian noted Karunanidhi's 1970 GO. Also: paddy incentive to ₹2,750/quintal, sugarcane to ₹4,000/tonne (Rule 110).
Resolution urging Centre to abolish NEET nationally, amend NMC Act, and allow Class 12 marks for medical admissions. Second resolution opposing the FCRA Amendment Bill 2026 asset provisions — follows 2021 bill that got no Presidential assent.
Four demands: permanently fix Lok Sabha at 543; freeze inter-state allocation; maintain 2.2:1 population ratio; 33% women's reservation from 2029 on existing seats. Vijay: "not a concession, but social justice." CM wrote to PM on Aug 14 conveying the resolution.
Crop loans up to ₹75,000 fully waived (Rule 110) — ₹953.06 Cr for 1.38 lakh more farmers; total ₹6,220 Cr. Supreme Court directed Karnataka to comply with CWMA. VCK formalised alliance with TVK at Ulundurpet. 100-day milestone.
Anthony Sami, John Rose Peter and Kumar killed on Aug 15 at Maria Mangala Beat, Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary. CM Vijay called it a massacre. Call-attention motion moved. FIR under S.103(1) BNS against forest officials. Magisterial inquiry ordered in Karnataka.
CMCHIS raised from ₹5L to ₹25L; ₹300 Cr Perambur hospital. Milk procurement price +₹3/litre (₹38→₹41) for 3.16 lakh producers. Vehicles and monthly allowance for all 234 MLAs — drawn criticism over public expenditure.
₹27,400 Cr Parandur airport project abandoned — manifesto promise kept; 1,000+ families and farmland protected; alternative site search begins. DMK walks out. Annapoorani Super Six: 3 free LPG cylinders/year for 1.30 Cr families from Pongal 2027 (₹4,000 Cr). Vettri Payanam: free bus travel expanded to Express and mofussil routes, no income ceiling, transgender included, from Oct 2 (₹6,000 Cr).
Assembly passed a resolution seeking permanent exemption from the Teacher Eligibility Test for teachers appointed before August 23, 2010, urging the Centre to protect their employment.
CM Vijay left the Chief Minister’s designated chair and sat in the front row between Leader of the House K.A. Sengottaiyan and Minister Aadhav Arjuna — breaking a decades-old seating convention.
Housing & Urban Development demands for grants: 462 Perambur apartments (₹111.08 Cr) · 15,000 EWS houses · 41,664 units renovated · Self-certification limit raised to 5,000 sq ft. CM congratulates Praggnanandhaa on Grand Chess Tour win. Election petition responses filed in Madras HC. The House completed its 17th sitting day; demands-for-grants debates continued into September.
The largest single-day announcement of the term: a ₹33,066 Cr Transmission Improvement Scheme (196 new substations, ~15,000 km of lines), the Thoothukudi supercritical thermal plant, a semiconductor park and urban distribution upgrades.
A 400 MLD seawater desalination plant at Minjur (₹4,800 Cr) for north Chennai, Avadi, Ponneri and Minjur; cases against protesting farmers and teachers withdrawn; waste-to-energy projects; digital driving licences and RCs.
Unanimous resolution seeking Tamil as a principal language of the Madras High Court. Under Rule 110: a Tamil Nadu Olympic City, a Motor Sports City, a ₹1,200 Cr integrated Assembly–Secretariat complex and 29,108 police posts over five years.
Replying to the debate on the Police Department’s demands, Vijay set out his vision for policing and delivered a sweeping attack on the DMK’s record; DMK members staged a protest and walked out. He was seen helping DMK MLA Durai Chandrasekar up after the floor protest.
Read the full story: The complete record of the session’s first 17 days · TVK MLAs’ meeting before the Budget (4 Aug)
Live coverage from the Monsoon Session of the 17th Assembly — including the TVK government's first full Budget and Agriculture Budget, CM Vijay's addresses to the House, and exchanges between the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. Session resolutions from this period included Tamil Thai Vazhthu, NEET abolition and the FCRA Bill, and delimitation.
