Udhayanidhi Stalin Takes On CM Vijay | DMK vs TVK | TN Assembly session day 1 | The Federal

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:16]Tamil Nadu's new assembly began today and already the sparks are flying. Today marked the first full session of the newly constituted house and the man who wasted absolutely no time making his presence felt was Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and now the leader of the opposition.

[00:00:36]Fresh off his election as the DMK's legislature party leader just a day earlier, Udhayanidhi stepped up to the mic and went straight for the jugular.

[00:00:45]His target? Sanatana Dharma again.

[00:00:57]Now, this isn't a new tune from Udhayanidhi. He's been singing it since 2023 and it even landed him in Supreme Court trouble before. But here he was on day one of a new assembly doubling down.

[00:01:11]However, it wasn't all confrontation.

[00:01:14]The new opposition leader also struck a surprisingly warm note, almost collegial, towards Chief Minister C.

[00:01:22]Joseph Vijay, the actor who swept to power just days ago.

[00:01:38]>> [laughter] >> The DMK which spent years running this state and came away from the 2026 polls with 59 seats clearly wants a seat at the governance table even from the opposition benches. Udhayanidhi was measured about it, too, praising Vijay for reaching out to leaders across party lines after his swearing-in and calling for that spirit of civility to carry into the chamber. However, it was not all hunky-dory. A cultural flashpoint that's been simmering since Vijay's oath-taking ceremony just 2 days ago boiled over right into the chamber. At that swearing-in, Tamil Nadu's beloved state anthem, Tamil Thai Vazhthu, was played after Vande Mataram.

[00:02:31]>> [singing] >> Snapping a decades-old protocol, parties across the spectrum erupted and Udhayanidhi made sure it didn't get buried. He pointed to the West Bengal swearing-in where Vande Mataram wasn't played at all and asked a pointed question about the role of the governor.

[00:02:56]>> [music] >> The DMK government has already said it was a one-time thing and future events will go back to tradition. But the opposition has served notice they'll be watching. So, what does day one in this assembly tell us? The DMK is not going to sit quietly as the opposition. With Udayanidhi at the helm, the party is positioning itself as a muscular, experienced check on a government still finding its feet. Vijay may be the new Chief Minister, but in this house, the drama has only just begun.