Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to C. Joseph Vijay as the 13th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai, on May 10, 2026. The ceremony marked a significant transition in Tamil Nadu's political landscape.
The Oath Ceremony
Governor Arlekar administered the Constitutional oath to Vijay and the nine Phase 1 cabinet ministers. The swearing-in was conducted in the presence of over 50,000 supporters, national political leaders including Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, and the outgoing DMK government's Udhayanidhi Stalin.
- Governor of Tamil Nadu: Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar (R.V. Arlekar)
- Oath administered: May 10, 2026 — JN Indoor Stadium, Chennai
- CM oath: Article 164 of the Constitution — oath of office and secrecy
- MLA oath: May 11, 2026 — Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, before Speaker Pro-tem M.V. Karuppiah
- Vijay's MLA oath: Subscribed before Speaker Pro-tem on May 11
- Speaker elected: May 12, 2026 — J.C.D. Prabhakar, unanimously
- Floor test: May 13, 2026 — 144 in favour, 22 against
Governor–CM Relationship
The Vijay government's relationship with Governor Arlekar began on a notably smoother note than the previous DMK government's contentious relationship with successive governors. The swearing-in was held without the delays that marked similar ceremonies in other states, and Arlekar promptly administered the oath once the TVK coalition's majority was confirmed.
MLA Oath — May 11
The day after taking CM's oath, Vijay was sworn in as a Member of the Legislative Assembly before Speaker Pro-tem M.V. Karuppiah on May 11. The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly records confirm this formal induction as an MLA — a separate ceremony from the CM oath. Speaker J.C.D. Prabhakar and Deputy Speaker M. Ravishankar were also elected on May 12 and formally led to the Chair by Leader of the House K.A. Sengottaiyan and Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin.
