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India's Tamil Nadu hung assembly: TVK short of 10 MLAs as DMK, AIADMK weigh options
Joseph Vijay’s TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member assembly but short of 10 legislators to form a government. DMK won 59 seats; AIADMK got 47, short of a dozen MLAs
- PUBLISHED: Fri 8 May 2026, 6:00 AM
Uncertainty over the formation of a new government in Tamil Nadu continues, even as Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief C. Joseph Vijay met state governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar for the second time, staking his claim.
Party supporters staged demonstrations across the state after Arlekar told Vijay that he does not have the numbers to form the government. Vijay has reportedly sought two months to prove his majority in the legislature.
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The TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member assembly and is short of 10 legislators to form a government. Vijay has won from two seats and will have to quit one, reducing his party’s strength to 107.
With the pressure mounting on legislators to back the leading party, AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) MLAs (members of Legislative Assembly) are being shifted to private resorts in Puducherry.
Edappadi K Palaniswami, the AIADMK chief, has not been able to patch the differences within his party to back TVK. Some leaders want him to support the actor-turned-politician, but are demanding positions including that of deputy chief minister.
Vijay has sought the support of the left parties and some others, but has stated he has not approached the National Democratic Alliance for its backing. “We have not asked and don’t intend to,” he was quoted in the media.
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K. Selvaperunthagai has called for demonstrations protesting against the BJP government at the centre, and the governor preventing the TVK from forming a government.
There is also speculation as to whether the two key rivals, DMK (with 59 seats) and AIADMK (47) will join hands and bid for power together.
With a combined strength of 106, they would still be short of a dozen MLAs, but could get the backing of some of the smaller players. Sources from both parties, however, have denied that they are in talks.
