CHENNAI: TVK government is set to win the confidence vote in the Assembly on Wednesday, with post-poll allies Congress, the Left parties, VCK and IUML backing Vijay.
With a section of AIADMK MLAs announcing support for the government, the floor test is unlikely to pose a major challenge for the ruling dispensation.
According to sources, Vijay will move the confidence motion in the House at 9.30 am on Wednesday. Virugampakkam MLA R Sabarinathan will be the TVK whip.
The TVK is expected to benefit from the uncertainty within the AIADMK, where rival camps led by party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and senior leader CVe Shanmugam are locked in a battle over office-bearer posts.
Since Speaker JCD Prabhakar is yet to recognise the claims over the AIADMK legislature party leadership, the whip issued by one faction may not bind the MLAs aligned with the other camp.
Political analyst Tharasu Shyam said the Speaker could take his own time to decide on the competing claims made by both groups. In such a situation, members are free to vote as per their wishes.
They will not be bound by the anti-defection law, he said. If the DMK abstains, the Speaker may opt for a voice vote and declare that the government has won the confidence motion.
Only if there is a formal demand for division will the House move to voting as per procedure. Sources said that if C Ve Shanmugam and SP Velumani can muster support of two-thirds of AIADMK MLAs, they might vote in favour of the government or else they may abstain to avoid issues arising out of anti-defection law.