Vijay expands TN cabinet with 7 Dalit mins; Congress back in govt after 59 years

Key points

• Vijay’s cabinet with 2 Brahmins bucks state’s political trend CHENNAI: Congress made a comeback into govt in Tamil Nadu ending its 59-year exile, with two of its legislators among 23 new ministers sworn in, as CM C Joseph Vijay Thursday expanded his cabinet in an exercise that rewarded loyalists, accommodated allies and signalled attempt at rewriting social engineering in state politics.With 21 TVK ministers taking oath along with Congress’s P Viswanathan and S Rajesh Kumar, who were allocated higher education and tourism, TN now has 33 ministers.
• With the remaining two slots kept for IUML and VCK, there will be no room for the antiEPS AIADMK faction.
• In a significant political message, Vijay inducted seven Dalit ministers, the highest representation for the community in TN’s history.
• The number is expected to rise to eight once VCK joins the ministry.The expansion also marked another departure from the state’s political trend, with...