Little on governance, plenty on politics: Decoding Vijay’s first speech as CM

Addressing a thanksgiving meeting on Monday (June 1) in Trichy East constituency, which voted him into the Assembly, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay largely steered away from governance announcements and instead focused on the political developments that unfolded after the Assembly election. He accused rival parties of attempting to prevent Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) from forming the government and launched attacks on both the DMK and AIADMK.

The speech marked Vijay's first public address as Chief Minister and offered insight into how he intends to position his government politically in the months ahead.

Attack on political rivals

Throughout the speech, Vijay repeatedly referred to alleged attempts by political opponents to keep TVK out of power after the election results. He also slammed the DMK and AIADMK, seeking to reinforce TVK's position as an alternative to the state's traditional Dravidian parties.

Also read: 'Stalin Sir!' 10 things Vijay said in Trichy, his first public meeting as CM

Speaking to The Federal, political analyst R Ilangovan said that Vijay’s speech was influenced by the political realities of governing without a comfortable majority. "The government is now functioning with outside support. TVK and its leadership are not very comfortable continuing governance with outside support from VCK, CPI, CPM and IUML. They want a clear majority," Ilangovan said.

According to him, the Chief Minister's speech appeared to be directed not only at current political rivals but also at possible future electoral contests.

"He is now targeting the DMK. But when you accept post-poll support from parties that contested against you, you cannot question the political morality of others discussing alliances. They have no right to do that," he said.

'Looking ahead'

Ilangovan believes TVK is already looking ahead to possible by-elections that could strengthen its position in the Assembly."For the first time, a minority government is trying to stabilise itself. They are preparing for future by-elections because they want a comfortable majority and do not want to depend on anyone," he said.

Also read: Why Vijay’s ‘inclusive Cabinet’ could become a new headache for DMK

He also noted that Vijay's speech contained little discussion of governance. "This is the first time he is meeting the public after taking office. But he did not speak much about governance. He has revived campaign mode because he knows elections may not be very far away," Ilangovan said.

Public turnout

Political analyst R Sundar believes the speech was designed to reassure supporters that they had made the right decision by voting for TVK.

"By mentioning the DMK-AIADMK alliance discussions that were widely spoken about when Vijay was struggling to form the government, he wants to strengthen the thought among people that they took the right decision to vote for him," Sundar said.

According to him, the turnout at the Trichy event itself reflected Vijay's continuing popularity. "The crowd that had gathered for Vijay's arrival in Trichy again establishes that his support is only increasing day by day. In Chennai and other cities that he visits, he is likely to attract huge crowds," he told The Federal.

Sundar also observed that Vijay appeared more confident and polished in his public delivery than during the election campaign.

Also read: 'TVK there, TRS here': Kavitha sees Telangana's Vijay moment coming

"He has improved a lot in his delivery of speech. In his first speech among the public as a Chief Minister, he assured that his governance would be clean and straightforward. Though his address was mostly political, he indicated that people have started paying attention to news and political issues," he said.

Withstanding the criticisms

One of the notable aspects of Vijay's speech was his attempt to portray himself as unaffected by criticism from opposition parties. "He mentioned in his speech that people want him to work and that they would handle all critical comments that come against him. By saying this, he wants to establish that he would not be bothered by the comments and criticism from DMK and AIADMK," Sundar added.

The analyst also pointed to Vijay's remarks about AIADMK, which he described as a "theerndhu pona sakthi" or a depleted force.

"At the same time, by saying that he follows MGR, respects MGR and can never equal MGR, he is signalling that for AIADMK supporters, TVK is the only place to settle," Sundar said.

Criticism from opposition

However, the speech has also drawn criticism from the opposition.

DMK spokesperson Saravanan argued that Vijay remains focused on election rhetoric rather than governance.

Also read: Can Vijay’s TVK repeat the TN miracle in Kerala? 'Here, we watch actors only in films'

"He has not got a spectacular victory. He is speaking as though he has got 180 seats or 200 seats. People did not want to give Mr. Vijay a clear mandate. So he has to analyse the reasons for that before gloating about his victory," Saravanan told The Federal.

The DMK leader further contended that the Chief Minister should now focus on delivering on election promises. "Mr. Vijay should find answers. He should give solutions to people rather than trying to blame others. He is still in campaign mode. Campaign modes will not auger well for governance," he said.

Progress questioned

Questioning the government's progress during its first month in office, Saravanan added, "There are only disappointments. He has to clearly set a timeline on when he will execute his poll promises. What about his poll promises? You cannot escape liability by saying that it will be done at an appropriate time."

He also rejected Vijay's criticism regarding the state's finances. "Tamil Nadu's finances are not a closed secret. It is open for anybody to analyse. He knew the state of finances during the campaign itself. He has to find ways to augment income. I don't think he has a clear blueprint," Saravanan said.

Also read: Vijay meets Modi in Delhi, raises key demands of Tamil Nadu

For supporters, the Trichy rally demonstrated Vijay's continued ability to draw large crowds and dominate the political conversation. For critics, however, the speech raised questions about whether the Chief Minister is focusing sufficiently on governance.

What is clear is that Vijay chose his first major public address as Chief Minister not to celebrate his government's initial achievements, but to revisit the political battles that shaped its formation. In doing so, he signalled that even from the seat of power, TVK intends to continue fighting the political contest that brought it there.