Fourth Time Lucky? Tracking Vijay’s Visits To Tamil Nadu Governor’s Residence To Form TVK Govt

Last Updated:May 09, 2026, 17:49 IST

Vijay met Tamil Nadu Governor RV Arlekar three times, who refused to accept his request to form the government due to insufficient numbers.

Actor-turned-politician Vijay reshaped the political narrative in Tamil Nadu as his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) emerged as the single largest force, but even the ‘Thalapathy’s’ immense popularity was not enough for the party to reach the majority mark, resulting in an almost never-ending power struggle.

Over the last few days, Vijay met Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar three times, who refused to accept his request to form the government due to insufficient numbers, raising questions on the governor’s discretionary powers. The TVK, on its part, cited legal precedents from power and mulled moving the Supreme Court over the matter.

The party had been engaged in intense post-poll negotiations to reach the magic number of 118 (117 after Vijay vacates a seat). It initially secured support from the Congress, which broke its decades-long alliance with the outgoing DMK. Vijay also reached out to the VCK and Left parties to end the political instability in the state.

Meeting 1

Vijay made his first trip to the Lok Bhavan in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday to persuade the government to let the TVK form the government. This came after the Congress extended the support of five MLAs to the TVK, taking the tally to 112.

Arlekar said the TVK prima facie did not have the numbers to do so and asked Vijay to prove his majority in the Assembly. At the time, the TVK had not reached out to any other party. So, Vijay returned empty-handed from the Governor’s House and began negotiating with other parties to bridge the gap.

Meeting 2

The second visit came on Thursday, with Vijay reiterating that TVK was ready to prove its majority on the floor of the House. However, this was still not enough for the Governor to accept Vijay’s request for government formation, and the talks ended without a breakthrough.

Meeting 3

Vijay met Governor Arlekar again on Friday, having secured the support of the CPI and CPI(M), who won two seats each. With the extended support of the Left parties, the TVK’s tally reached 116, which was just short of a majority.

However, there was no official announcement from the Governor’s office, and a scheduled swearing-in ceremony was called off as the party failed to reach the magic number.

Fourth Time Lucky?

The TVK received the support of VCK and IUML, taking its overall tally to 120, more than enough to form the government. Vijay is likely to meet Governor Arlekar at Lok Bhavan as he now has majority support to form a government.

Vijay has requested all party representatives or leaders who have given support to be with him as he is expected to reach the governor’s residence between 6 and 7 pm, sources told CNN-News18.

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