Chennai: Fresh political friction has erupted in Tamil Nadu following today's cabinet swearing-in ceremony, where the Tamil Thai Valthu was once again played third during an official ceremony.
This marks the third consecutive occasion where the Tamil anthem has been placed third in the protocol order, triggering fresh criticism and political reactions across the state regarding the government's failure to uphold regional ceremonial traditions.
The opposition had earlier also raised the issue when the national song 'Vande Mataram' was accorded priority during the swearing-in ceremony of the cabinet ministers on Thursday and earlier during Vijay's swearing-in as the Chief Minister.
DMK MP Kanimozhi called it an act of disrespecting the state song and questioned the TVK over "silence" on the incident.
"The TVK government had stated that 'such a thing will not happen again,' so why is it now maintaining silence despite witnessing this?" Kanimozhi wrote on X.
DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan alleged that the TVK government was under pressure from the Governor, Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar, whom he accused of being the "BJP's man."
Elangovan said, "They (Tamil Nadu government) have no control. They are under pressure from the Governor, who is a BJP man. They will disrespect Tamil and the practices in Tamil Nadu."
DMK leader RS Bharathi also levelled sharp criticism against the state government, alleging that the current administration showed a disregard for the Tamil language and its cultural protocols.
Speaking to ANI, the DMK leader claimed that the opposition parties had raised valid concerns, but the government had repeatedly ignored them.
The DMK leader connected the current row to the party's long-standing ideological opposition to the imposition of Hindi. He framed the party's stance as a historical necessity rather than a recent political pivot.
Echoing similar thoughts, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) General Secretary Vaiko asserted that 'Tamil Thai Vazhthu' should be sung first at state government events, followed by the national anthem 'Jana Gana Mana.'
"First, the 'Tamil Thai Vazhthu' must be sung, and then the national anthem, 'Jana Gana Mana,' should be sung. This is what we have been firmly emphasising. I strongly urge the Tamil Nadu government not to permit, under any circumstances, the introduction or singing of this controversial 'Vande Mataram' at Tamil Nadu government functions," he said.
Vaiko added, "The Governor is organising these events, and since they are connected to his office, he has acted in this manner. But in functions conducted by the Tamil Nadu government, such incidents should not occur. Every time this issue has been raised, I have said the same thing, and I continue to say the same now as well."
Meanwhile, BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan hit back at the criticism and advised the TVK to be cautious after allying with Congress.
The BJP leader said, "The only motto of Congress is power hunger. Because of this, they have joined TVK, and TVK should be cautious about the alliance."
Earlier, after the national song took precedence during Vijay's swearing-in, Tamil Nadu Minister Aadhav Arjuna had claimed that the Tamil invocation song 'Thamizhthai Vaazhthu' was pushed to third during Chief Minister Vijay's swearing-in ceremony because of "a new circular from the Union government" and affirmed that this practice will no longer be followed in the state.
