Chennai, May 9: In a significant development for Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) on Saturday announced its “unconditional support” to the party, bringing the total number of parties backing TVK to five. With this addition, TVK’s support in the Tamil Nadu Assembly has risen to 121 MLAs.

TVK’s current allies include Congress, CPI, CPI(M), VCK, and now IUML. Among these, Congress has five MLAs, while CPI, CPI(M), VCK, and IUML contribute two MLAs each.

The IUML’s backing was communicated to Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar through a letter signed by party leaders SSB Syed Farooq Basha and AM Shahjahan. The letter emphasized that the support is extended “in the interest of stable, secular, and democratic governance” in Tamil Nadu.

On the same day, TVK also received official support from VCK’s two MLAs, further strengthening its coalition prospects. VCK President Thol. Thirumavalavan handed over the confirmation letter to TVK General Secretary of Election Campaign Management, Aadhav Arjuna, formally committing the party’s support to Vijay-led TVK.

With these endorsements, TVK is now well-positioned to form the state government. The party, which made a remarkable debut in the assembly elections by winning 108 seats, had earlier secured support from Congress, CPI, CPI(M), and VCK, bringing its total backing to 119 MLAs. The majority mark in the 234-member House is 118.

TVK Chief Vijay, who won from two constituencies, is expected to resign from one seat, which will adjust the effective strength of the party to 107 and reduce the Assembly’s strength to 233. With the support of IUML and VCK, Vijay is set to meet Governor Arlekar with all the letters of backing to formalize the formation of the government.