Chennai: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) MLAs representing city constituencies have walked away with the lion’s share of ministerial and other berths announced by the govt so far. Of the 10 sworn in ministers, five, including chief minister C Joseph Vijay, are from the city. The others are: Aadhav Arjuna (Villivakkam), N Anand (T Nagar), Rajmohan (Egmore) and P Venkataramanan (Mylapore).Besides, the Thousand Lights MLA JCD Prabhakar has been named Speaker, while 30-year-old Virugambakkam MLA R Sabarinathan, son of Vijay’s long-time driver Rajendiran, has been appointed govt chief whip. Both these posts enjoy cabinet-rank status.TVK secured an average of 45-50% vote share across all assembly segments in Chennai, the highest in the state. TVK functionaries believe entrusting the city MLAs with bigger responsibilities in the state will help the party consolidate its image as a city-centric, governance-focused entity.V S Babu, the TVK MLA who defeated former chief minister M K Stalin in Kolathur, said ministers from the capital will enable better attention and development, which the city requires. “It is also a gesture in return for the strong mandate people gave us,” he said.The DMK and AIADMK govts in the past usually had three or four ministers from the capital in their cabinets. RK Nagar TVK MLA Marie Wilson said that with the chief minister himself representing Perambur, there would be greater focus on north Chennai. “Besides this, the chief minister probably wants to strengthen the base here for subsequent local body and Lok Sabha elections too,” Wilson said.TVK Villivakkam district executive member G V Sriram said every party requires a launchpad before expanding statewide. “MGR was initially strong in western Tamil Nadu while the DMK was strong in the city. But all parties subsequently expanded their base after forming govts. Similarly, TVK too will expand,” he said.“Also, since it is the first election, all the top brass contested from here due to high enrolments, and we all knew, if they win, they will be ministers. In the future, star candidates may contest elsewhere too,” he said.Party members say the high representation could also help push major urban infrastructure projects requiring close ministerial supervision. Chennai is home to projects such as the Rs 1,000-crore Smart City initiative, the Rs 3,225-crore Kosasthalaiyar stormwater drain works and over Rs 5,000 crore worth of solid waste management projects. T Nagar, one of the state’s busiest commercial hubs, has also seen major Smart City investments, including pedestrian plazas and multi-level parking facilities.The representation from the capital is also socially diverse, with Egmore getting a Dalit minister in Rajmohan. The constituency last had a minister in 2006 when senior DMK leader Parithi Ilamvazhuthi represented it. Dalit residents from resettlement colonies in the city were among TVK’s key voter groups in the election and were also at the forefront of prolonged sanitary workers’ protests. The party has also a Brahmin MLA a ministerial representation through Venkataramanan from Mylapore, where the community has a sizeable presence.
