Mano Thangaraj sworn in as minister in Stalin-led cabinet

Padmanabhapuram DMK MLA T Mano Thangaraj was on Monday sworn-in as minister, and re-inducted in the M K Stalin-led Tamil Nadu cabinet in a minor reshuffle post the resignation of two senior ministers. Governor RN Ravi administered the oath of office to Thangaraj, who was removed as Milk and Dairy Development minister in the previous rejig of the cabinet. Incidentally he was allotted the same portfolio on Monday. The event also saw Chief Minister M K Stalin and Governor Ravi meet for the first time post the DMK government securing a favourable verdict in the Supreme Court against the latter delaying assent to various Bills adopted in the state Assembly. The CM and Governor shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin, senior minister Duraimurugan among others attended the swearing-in. The Raj Bhavan later said that Thangaraj has been allotted Milk and Dairy Development. The Governor approved the subject allocation on the recommendation of the CM, an official release said.

On Sunday, Tamil Nadu Ministers V Senthil Balaji and K Ponmudy resigned, in the wake of the court cases against them. Senthil Balaji, facing ED probe in a cash-for-jobs scam in an earlier AIADMK regime, had been asked by the Supreme Court last week to make a choice "between post and freedom" as it had warned him of cancelling bail if he did not step down as minister. Ponmudy, a senior DMK leader, had courted a major controversy recently over his Shaivite-Vaishnavite remarks made in the context of a sex worker, drawing widespread criticism, even as the Madras High Court later initiated proceedings on its own on the matter. The portfolios held by Balaji-- Electricity, Excise and Prohibition, had been allotted to SS Sivasankar and S Muthusamy, respectively. Ponmudy's Forest and Khadi portfolios will be handled by RS Rajakannappan, who was hitherto the Dairy Development minister. Further, the Governor had accepted the CM's recommendation to include Thangaraj in the cabinet. He represents the Padmanabhapuram Assembly constituency in Kanyakumari district and had been the IT Minister when the DMK assumed power in 2021.