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Inside CM Vijay’s 100 days in office: Cauvery, Trisha controversies to free power and loan relief
The Vijay government has faced questions over the implementation of TVK's election promises, its handling of the Cauvery water dispute and the state's finances.
Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay on Monday completed 100 days in office. The milestone came with a report titled “100 Days of Governance – A Government for Generations”, which consisted of all the achievements during his maiden term.
Not forgetting the Cauvery row and multiple corruption charges, here’s a look at what all happened during these 100 days.
The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government has used its first 100 days to roll out welfare measures, expand benefits for students and women, announce relief for farmers, push investment and tighten its anti-drug and liquor-control measures.
At the same time, the government has faced questions over the implementation of election promises, its handling of the Cauvery water dispute, law and order, the state's finances and allegations of corruption. Opposition parties have also accused Vijay of simply renaming or repackaging schemes introduced by the previous DMK government.
READ ALSO | ‘Explanation unacceptable’: CM Vijay condemns killing of three Tamil men by Karnataka forest department
How Vijay came to power
The actor-turned-politician took oath as Tamil Nadu chief minister on May 10 after TVK was the largest vote-scoring party in the 2026 Assembly election. The party won 108 seats and formed a coalition government with its allies, including the Congress, VCK and IUML. Vijay thus became the head of the first government in decades in Tamil Nadu that was not led by either the DMK or AIADMK.
In his first day in office, Vijay signed orders on three major campaign promises: 200 units of free electricity for eligible households, a dedicated women's safety force and anti-narcotics task forces.
Corruption controversies
In his first Independence Day speech as chief minister, he said that preventing government revenue from going to private individuals was a key priority and that action was being taken to eliminate graft. He also said that fighting corruption was comparable to achieving freedom.
But this claim has now been challenged by BJP leader and former state BJP president K Annamalai.
Annamalai has alleged that some ministers in the Vijay government were demanding 2% to 4% kickbacks from contractors handling government tenders.
READ ALSO | ‘Have audios’: Annamalai’s big charge against CM Vijay’s govt, claims ministers demand 2-4% kickbacks
Cauvery dispute
Tamil Nadu has sought Karnataka's release of its due share of Cauvery water and has approached the Supreme Court, with the state claiming a shortfall of around 26.954 thousand million cubic feet.
AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami has attacked the Vijay government over its handling of the issue and said that the administration lacks the experience required to protect Tamil Nadu's interests and that delta farmers are suffering.
Vijay has said that while his government will cooperate with the Centre on administrative matters, it will oppose decisions that go against Tamil Nadu's rights.
Karur stampede remains an issue
The September 2025 Karur stampede at a TVK rally addressed by Vijay killed 41 people and injured over 100.
The CBI is probing the case. Vijay’s government announced jobs for victims’ families, but the Madras HC struck down the move over equality and public employment concerns. The Supreme Court later stayed the ruling.
Opposition says Vijay is putting ‘stickers’ on old schemes
Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin has accused the government of taking schemes introduced during the DMK regime, changing their names and presenting them as new initiatives.
On August 16, Udhayanidhi called Vijay a “dummy CM” and alleged that the TVK government was putting its stickers on existing DMK schemes.
The Udhayanidhi-Trisha row
Another political confrontation involved Udhayanidhi Stalin and actor Trisha Krishnan. Udhayanidhi was detained after TVK functionaries complained over alleged derogatory remarks he made about CM Vijay's friend Trisha at a rally in Thanjavur.
Police booked him under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Information Technology Act and the Tamil Nadu Women Harassment Prevention Act.
Udhayanidhi denied that he had said anything wrong and said he was ready to face the consequences.
READ ALSO | Tamil Nadu CM C Joseph Vijay announces full waiver of co-op farm loans upto ₹75,000
Vijay's Welfare push
The controversies, though, did not stop the actor-turned-chief minister from rolling out several welfare measures he had promised during his election campaign.
1. 200 units of free electricity
One of Vijay's first decisions was to increase the free electricity entitlement from 100 units to 200 units every two months for domestic consumers whose total consumption is up to 500 units in a two-month billing cycle. The government order put the additional annual tariff subsidy burden at about ₹1,730 crore.
2. Women’s safety gets a new force
Vijay's government created the Singa Pen Sirappu Athiradi Padai, a dedicated women's safety force.
The government, though, has also faced criticism over law and order. Opposition leader Udhayanidhi Stalin has repeatedly attacked the administration over reported murders, sexual offences and drug-related incidents. During the ongoing Assembly proceedings, Stalin asked whether the new women's safety force made a difference on the ground.
Udhayanidhi earlier cited reports of 25 murders, four double murders and 19 sexual offences in a 15-day period.
3. Anti-drug crackdown and liquor shops
The government ordered the creation of 65 special task forces under STING (Special Task Force for Interdiction of Narcotics and Gangs) to tackle drug trafficking and gangs.
The government also ordered 717 TASMAC liquor shops located near educational institutions, places of worship and transport points, to be closed.
4. For women and families
Under the Thaaymaaman Thanga Mothiram Scheme, every newborn delivered in a government hospital is to receive a 1-gram gold ring. The government has earmarked ₹560 crore for the scheme.
The Annan's Seer Scheme provides eligible women getting married with an 8-gram gold coin and a silk saree, with an allocation of ₹812 crore.
5. Education: breakfast, laptops, bicycles, skills
The Vijay-led government says the Vettri Skill Training Scheme has provided skill development training to 12 lakh students and 1 lakh youth.
The Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme has been expanded to cover another 15.14 lakh students in Classes 6 to 8 across 15,414 schools, with ₹710 crore allocated for the expansion.
Under the Vettri Laptop Scheme, the government has earmarked ₹2,000 crore for laptops for college students.
Class XI students in government and government-aided schools are also being provided branded bicycles along with helmets and water bottles. Within the first few weeks, it announced nine new textbooks for Classes 1 to 3.
6. Farmer relief: ₹6,000 crore crop-loan waiver
Vijay announced a full waiver of cooperative farm loans up to ₹75,000, with additional relief for loans up to ₹1 lakh. The expanded waiver will benefit 13.34 lakh farmers, taking the total waiver to ₹6,220 crore, with an extra ₹953.06 crore support.
