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Both VCK and IUML are still expected to join the government in the coming days, with one berth each likely to be allotted after another round of consultations
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay
When Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay expanded his cabinet on Thursday, the biggest talking point was not who got in, but who did not.
Allies Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), both of whom played a key role in helping the TVK-led coalition cross the majority mark after the fractured 2026 verdict, were missing from the list.
The omission immediately triggered speculation of friction within the alliance. However, NDTV, quoting sources, said the move may be less a political snub and more a delayed accommodation. According to NDTV, both VCK and IUML are still expected to join the government in the coming days, with one berth each likely to be allotted after another round of consultations.
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The arithmetic explains why the two parties matter. After the 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly election produced a hung verdict, Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam emerged as the single-largest party but fell short of a majority. Support from the Congress, VCK, IUML and Left parties helped the actor-turned-politician stake claim to power and break the Dravidian duopoly. VCK and IUML, despite continuing ties with the DMK-led secular alliance outside the government framework, extended support to Vijay during the government formation crisis.
This unusual arrangement has made cabinet negotiations more delicate than in a conventional coalition. Congress has already entered the government for the first time in nearly six decades, with two MLAs inducted into the ministry during the expansion. But VCK and IUML appear to be taking a more calibrated route, balancing participation in government with their broader political positioning in Tamil Nadu. Sources told NDTV that the two parties have not made up their minds yet about their ministerial picks, leading to their exclusion from the cabinet. Under the 15 per cent cap linked to the assembly’s 234-member strength, Vijay can appoint up to 35 ministers. He has so far named 32, deliberately leaving three berths open. This has widely been seen as a gesture aimed at accommodating his uneasy allies, the VCK and IUML.
There is also the question of optics and sequencing. Vijay’s first weeks in office have been focused on stabilising the coalition and projecting administrative control after a turbulent government formation process that involved intense negotiations and outside support arrangements. Bringing in every supporting party immediately may have complicated that messaging.
For now, neither VCK nor IUML has publicly attacked the government over the delay. That has only strengthened the perception in Chennai’s political circles that the exclusion may be temporary, and strategic, rather than a fallout within the alliance.
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