A moment of unexpected interruption occurred during the Tamil Nadu cabinet expansion ceremony when Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar corrected newly inducted Congress minister S. Rajesh Kumar for straying from the prescribed text while taking his oath of office at Lok Bhavan in Chennai. Rajesh Kumar, the Congress Legislature Party leader representing Killiyoor constituency, was among the ministers inducted into Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s government during the first expansion of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK)-led government. His induction marked the Congress party’s entry into the state Cabinet after several decades.
During the oath-taking ceremony, Rajesh Kumar began reading the prescribed oath but briefly deviated from the approved text to praise senior Congress leaders K. Kamaraj, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi. Governor Arlekar intervened, stating that the comments were not part of the constitutional oath. He interrupted Kumar, saying, “That is not part of your oath.” An official then directed Rajesh Kumar back to the approved text, and he completed the oath as required.
The ceremony also saw political enthusiasm from other newly sworn-in ministers of the ruling TVK. A. Vijay Tamilan Parthiban, the MLA from Salem South, concluded his oath by chanting in support of Chief Minister Vijay, declaring, “Vaazhga Thalaivar, Valarga Tamil” (Long live the leader, may Tamil prosper). TVK legislator Thennarasu from Sriperumbudur expressed loyalty to both the party leadership and the organization at the end of his oath. Despite some spontaneous political slogans, the ceremony proceeded smoothly, briefly shifting focus from formal proceedings to party identity and political symbolism.
