DMK chief MK Stalin took the oath as the new Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, along with 33 members of his cabinet, by Governor Banwarilal Purohit in a simple ceremony – amid restrictions in place due to the pandemic – at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai this morning.
DMK President Stalin’s cabinet, including him, would consist of 34 members and he retained senior officials such as Duraimurugan and for the first time more than a dozen ministers.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated MK Stalin
“Congratulations to Thiru MK Stalin on being sworn-in as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on Twitter.
Governor Banwarilal Purohit has approved Chief Minister-designate MK Stalin’s list of people to be appointed as ministers, along with their portfolios.
MK Stalin will become Chief Minister for the first time, will be in charge of the Home Ministry as well as other portfolios such as public, general administration, all-India services, district revenue officers, special programme implementation, and differently-abled persons’ welfare, according to the release.
Duraimurugan, a party veteran and general secretary who previously held portfolios such as Public Works during the previous DMK regime (2006-11), will be Minister of Water Resources, overseeing irrigation projects as well as mines and minerals.
Former Chennai Mayor Ma Subramanian and PK Sekarbabu, the party’s strongman in north Chennai, are among the first-time Ministers.
Health and Family Welfare and Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments have been assigned to Subramanian and Sekarbabu, respectively.
Finance has been assigned to Palanivel Thiagarajan, a former investment banker, and Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi School Education has been assigned to Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi.
Thiagarajan and Poyyamozhi would be ministers for the first time, and they come from prominent Tamil Nadu families who spearheaded the Dravidian movement and worked for the DMK for many years.
V Senthil Balaji, who served as a transport minister under the previous AIADMK regime led by J Jayalalithaa from 2011 to 2015 and joined the DMK in 2018, has been appointed to the Electricity Department.
