There has been an earthquake once again in the politics of Tamil Nadu. In fact, an important petition has been filed in the Supreme Court regarding serious allegations of alleged horse trading and corruption in the assembly elections. In this petition, not only has the case been demanded for investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), but an appeal has also been made to impose President’s rule in the state till the investigation is completed. This matter has become increasingly heated in the political circles of Tamil Nadu and is being discussed everywhere.
Actually, this petition has been filed in the Supreme Court by KK Ramesh, a resident of Madurai. He has clearly stated in his allegations that after the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, TVK Party has gained the support of other MLAs by resorting to horse trading. It has also been alleged in the petition that there has been widespread corruption in this entire process. Recently, TVK chief C. Joseph Vijay has become the new Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, after which this controversy has deepened further.
The Union of India, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Government of Tamil Nadu have been made parties in this public interest litigation (PIL) filed by KK Ramesh. The petitioner has specifically demanded a CBI inquiry against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has further increased the seriousness of the matter.
It has been explained in detail in the petition that TVK had emerged as the largest party in the recent assembly elections. In the election results declared on May 4, TVK had surprisingly won 108 seats, making it the largest party in the state. However, the party failed to achieve the absolute majority figure required to form the government. After this, parties like Congress, CPI, CPIM and IUML announced their support to Vijay’s party. After the support of all these, C. Joseph Vijay took oath as the Chief Minister on May 10 and soon after proved his majority in the Assembly.
But controversy arose over the method of proving majority. When Vijay’s party proved its majority during the floor test in the Assembly, all political analysts and the general public were shocked. In fact, 25 AIADMK MLAs unexpectedly extended their support to TVK. The sudden endorsement took the total tally of the TVK alliance to 144, sending shockwaves through political circles and giving rise to allegations of horse trading. This development is raising questions on the political stability of the state.
Amidst these political upheavals, another important development has come to light. Two Congress MLAs in Tamil Nadu are soon going to take oath as ministers in the government cabinet. Congress’s Rajesh Kumar and P. Vishwanathan will be part of the Tamil Nadu government. This incident is also historic because along with these MLAs, Congress is joining the cabinet of Tamil Nadu after 59 years. This shows how the politics of the state is changing rapidly and new equations are being created. Now all eyes are on this petition filed in the Supreme Court to see what can happen next.
