Udhayanidhi Stalin Takes Oath as Leader of Opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly
Before the proceedings began, Udhayanidhi Stalin entered the Assembly and took his seat designated for the Leader of Opposition
Chennai: Former Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin took the oath as Leader of Opposition in the newly constituted Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday as members of the House were sworn in following the formation of the C Joseph Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government in the state.
Before the proceedings began, Udhayanidhi Stalin entered the Assembly and took his seat designated for the Leader of Opposition. Chief Minister Vijay later entered the House and greeted Udhayanidhi ahead of the oath-taking proceedings.
The session began with pro tem Speaker MV Karuppaiah welcoming all members to the first session of the 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. Addressing the House in Tamil, Karuppaiah thanked Chief Minister Vijay for giving him an opportunity to contest the elections and also expressed gratitude to the people of his constituency for electing him as an MLA.
He further thanked the Chief Minister for appointing him as pro tem Speaker.Karuppaiah invoked leaders such as Periyar, K Kamaraj, BR Ambedkar, Rani Velu Nachiyar and Anjalai Ammal, calling them ideological inspirations for the new government.As per Assembly procedure, Chief Minister Vijay took the oath first as MLA from the Perambur constituency, followed by ministers and members of the House.
Ministers including N Anand, Aadhav Arjuna, KG Arunraj, KA Sengottaiyan, Raj Mohan, CT Nirmal Kumar and Venkat Raman also took an oath as members of the Assembly.Former minister PK Sekar Babu and senior leaders, including Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam were among those sworn in. TVK emerged as the single largest party in the recently concluded Tamil Nadu Assembly elections with 108 seats and later formed the government with support from Congress, VCK, Left parties and IUML.
Earlier, after taking an oath as Chief Minister, Vijay promised a "transparent government" and announced that his administration would prioritise education, infrastructure, drinking water facilities and women's safety. He also signed files approving 200 units of free electricity and the formation of Special Task Forces to combat drug-related crimes and ensure women's security.