Several first-time legislators were entrusted with some key portfolios in the latest expansion of the Chief Minister Vijay-led cabinet on Thursday. The members were sworn in by Governor Rajendra Arlekar at the Lok Bhavan. Previously, 10 members, including the CM, took oath on May 10. Here is a look at the 21 newly-inducted TVK ministers, their porfolios and background
A Srinath
Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare
A friend of Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, the 52-year-old debuted with him onscreen in 1992 (Naalaiya Theerpu). Srinath became known for campaigning on marine livelihood issues and fishermen’s rights
Kamali S
Animal Husbandry
The 28-year-old PG in English literature (MA, B.Ed) had staged an upset in Avinashi by defeating Union Minister and BJP leader L Murugan. The former homemaker is one of the youngest in the TVK cabinet
C Vijayalakshmi
Milk and Dairy Development
A frontline TVK leader and self-employed organiser from in Kumarapalayam reportedly earned recognition through local governance and women-focused programmes. She studied up to Class 12
RV Ranjithkumar
Forests
He is an established local agriculturist, businessman, and real-estate operator from Kancheepuram. The 50-year-old BA from Tamil Nadu Open University brings a pragmatic local grounding to the forest ministry
R Vinoth
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
He made headlines by deploying a life-size 3D hologram of Vijay to address voters and draw massive crowds. The 32-year-old trader from Kumbakonam discontinued his engineering degree to join politics
Rajeev
Environment and Climate Change
The 33-year-old doctor completed his MBBS in 2016 from Raja Muthiah Medical College. As the sole TVK legislator from Ramanathapuram (Thiruvadanai), he is set to anchor Tamil Nadu’s climate policies
B Rajkumar
Housing and Urban Development
Elected from the Cuddalore segment, the 46-year-old has a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering (DME) from Muthiah Polytechnic College, Chidambaram. He was into real estate business, and will now manage urban planning
V Gandhiraj
Cooperation
The 52-year-old civil contractor wrested control of AIADMK-stronghold Arakkonam seat from the Dravidian major. He discontinued his arts degree at Madras University to build his construction business before entering politics
M Vijay Balaji
Handlooms, Textiles and Khadi
Emerging victorious from the highly competitive Erode East Assembly segment, the 37-year-old commerce graduate takes political custody of the state’s iconic textile belt, aiming to modernise weavers’ cooperatives
P Mathan Raja
MSMEs
Representing Ottapidaram, the 41-year-old engineer (BE, Sri Venkateswara College) and entrepreneur is expected to inject tech-driven industrial growth strategies into TN’s crucial micro, small, and medium businesses
Jegadeshwari K
Social Welfare and Women Empowerment
The 40-year-old B.Sc grad won the election from Rajapalayam constituency. She has reportedly worked extensively with women’s self-help groups and welfare campaigns
Logesh Tamilselvan D
Commercial Taxes and Registration
Winning from Rasipuram, he gained visibility during the election campaign. A B.Com from Loyola College, Chennai, the 42-year-old also holds an MBA degree from IIPM, Delhi
Vijay Tamilan Parthiban
Transport
Representing Salem South, the 50-year-old 12th pass worked in the Tamil film industry and appeared in supporting roles in several Vijay-starrers, before entering full-time politics with the TVK
S Ramesh
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments
Elected from Srirangam, Ramesh was associated with Vijay’s fan club Thalapathy Vijay Makkal Iyakkam. The 32-year-old engineer quit his career as a software professional to dedicate himself to grassroots politics and the TVK
K Thennarasu
Non-Resident Tamils Welfare
Winning the industrialised Sriperumbudur constituency, the 36-year-old 8th pass had declared business (commission agent) as his profession in his election affidavit
R Kumar
AI, Information Technology and Digital Services
Representing Velachery constituency, he heads a freshly conceptualised department tasked with positioning TN as a national leader in AI deployment. The 60-year-old holds a BE degree in civil engineering
D Sarathkumar
Human Resources Management
Winning the vital urban constituency of Tambaram, he had declared civil contractor as his profession in the election affidavit. He is a graduate
V Sampath Kumar
Backward Classes Welfare
Defeating legacy candidates in Coimbatore North, the 47-year-old is a PG and has declared himself as a dairy owner
Vignesh K
Prohibition and Excise
Elected from Kinathukadavu, he takes up one of the state’s most politically sensitive portfolios, TASMAC operations. The 38-year-old holds a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science
Mohamed Farvas J
Labour Welfare and Skill Development
Representing Aranthangi, the Bachelor of Arts graduate has obtained his LLB from National Law School in 2019. He has declared printing industry as his profession
N Marie Wilson
Finance, Planning & Development
Winning from Dr Radhakrishnan Nagar, Marie Wilson is entrusted with the influential Finance portfolio, which was earlier given to veteran leader K A Sengottaiyan. A relatively young face in state politics, he is a BTech, MBA and PhD in management science. The faith in his administrative capability is driven by his past experience as the MD of Jeppiaar Institute of Technology. Wilson is a prominent educationist from the influential Jeppiaar family. Col Dr Jeppiaar, former father-in-law of Wilson, had unsuccessfully contested 1989 state polls