Udhayanidhi Stalin is Deputy Chief Minister, Senthil Balaji back as Minister

Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sunday officially assumed the role of Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister, while V Senthil Balaji and SM Nasar were re-inducted into the state Cabinet after the duo took oath of office at the Raj Bhavan in Chennai.
Also, Dr Govi Chezhiaan and R Rajendran were sworn-in as first-time ministers.
Governor RN Ravi administered the oath to the ministers as Udhayanidhi, along with his father and Chief Minister MK Stalin, attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Senthil Balaji took oath as the Minister of Electricity, Prohibition and Excise, the same portfolio he held from May 2021 to June 2023.
Also, Dr Govi Chezhiaan was sworn-in as Tamil Nadu Minister of Higher Education, while R Rajendran got the Tourism Ministry.
SM Nasar took oath as the Minister for Minorities Welfare and non-resident Tamils Welfare. He earlier held the portfolio of Milk and Dairy Development in the Stalin Cabinet from May 2021 to May 2023.
Apart from these four, K Ponmudy took on the role of Minister for Forests, Environment, and Climate Change. Siva V Meyyanathan took oath as the new Minister for Backward Classes Welfare, while N Kayalvizhi Selvaraj has taken over the Human Resources Management and Ex-Servicemen Welfare portfolios. M Mathiventhan assumed responsibility for Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare.
RS Rajakannappan has been named Minister for Milk and Dairy Development as well as Khadi & Village Industries, and Thangam Tennarasu is allocated to the portfolios of Environment, the Pollution Control Board, and Climate Change, in addition to his current portfolios of Finance and Archaeology.
The Tamil Nadu Cabinet reshuffle came a day after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin recommended their names to the Governor, who approved them and the portfolios given to them.
However, three ministers, T Mano Thangaraj (Minister of Milk and Dairy Development), Gingee KS Masthan (Minister of Minorities Welfare and Non-Resident Tamils Welfare) and K Ramachandran (Minister of Tourism) were dropped from the cabinet.
But the biggest development of the day was Udhayanidhi Stalin’s deputation as his father’s deputy.
Tamil Nadu Sport Minister Udhayanidhi was appointed as the Deputy Chief Minister. Besides already holding the charge of the Sports Ministry, Udhayanidhi was allotted the portfolio of Planning and Development as well.
Also, just two days after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court in connection with a money laundering case, V Senthil Balaji was re-introduced into the Tamil Nadu Cabinet on Saturday.
On Thursday, a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices AS Oka and AG Masih granted bail to Balaji, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in June last year in a money laundering case linked to a cash-for-jobs scam.