Emotional scenes mark Tamil Nadu CM Vijay's swearing-in ceremony in Chennai

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, where the CM was sworn in on Sunday after a dramatic return, is not a new place for Vijay.

C Joseph Vijay on Sunday took oath of office and secrecy in the name of God, following the footsteps of his predecessors J Jayalalithaa, O Panneerselvam, and Edappadi K Palaniswami. However, Vijay’s cabinet colleague Aadhav Arjuna was the only one to take the oath by solemnly affirming.

A follower of Dravidian principles and rationalism, DMK founder C N Annadurai began the practice of taking oath by solemnly affirming instead of in the name of God. His proteges M Karunanidhi and M G Ramachandran, a staunch believer, followed Anna while taking oath.

Parents and allies in the front row

S A Chandrasekaran and Shobha, parents of Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, were seated in the front row at his swearing-in ceremony on Sunday. Both got emotional when Vijay read out the oath of office and secrecy and wiped their tears. They were accompanied by other family members. Along with Vijay’s parents, leaders from CPI (M), CPI, VCK, IUML, and Congress, who are supporting the TVK government, were seated in the front row.

Vijay’s long-time co-star Trisha Krishnan was also seated in the front row.

Seeking permission before the transition

That N Anand is an ardent fan of Vijay is legendary by now, but on Sunday he displayed his loyalty to the world. After the Governor administered the oath of office and secrecy, Anand was asked to sign in a book. But he turned to Vijay and sought his permission. With Vijay nodding his head with a smile, Anand happily affixed his signature.

The transition to yellow

Moments after C Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister, social media pages handled by the Department of Information and Public Relations underwent a massive change. The backgrounds were changed to yellow, Vijay’s favourite colour and colour of the TVK flag. Even graphic cards released to the media about the swearing-in had the background as yellow.

Vijay’s dramatic return to Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, where he was sworn in on Sunday, is not a new place for Vijay. He has spoken from the same stadium on numerous occasions, but they were audio launches of his movies.

The last time he visited the stadium was on November 1, 2023, for the success meet of his movie, Leo. He was asked about 2026 and he responded Cup’u mukkiyam, Bigilu (Winning the cup is important).” The dialogue is from his 2019 movie Bigil that revolves around a football coach. And, Vijay returned to the venue with his cup, victory in the assembly elections.