Minister for Public Works and Sports Development Aadhav Arjuna on Friday said the induction of MLAs from the IUML and the VCK into Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay-led Cabinet was a historic occasion.

Speaking to reporters at the Secretariat in Chennai, Mr. Arjuna said the Chief Minister had formed the Cabinet on secular social justice principles, following the vision of leaders such as Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, B.R. Ambedkar, and C.N. Annadurai.

He said the people of Tamil Nadu, cutting across caste and religious lines, had created history by rejecting money, power, caste and religion-based politics.

Going by the promise made by Mr. Vijay regarding a share in power at the TVK’s first State conference in Vikravandi, the present Tamil Nadu Cabinet serves as the best example of inclusive governance that the whole of India would admire, Mr. Arjuna said.

Those from humble backgrounds, who had worked for the party, were given representation irrespective of caste, he added.

According to him, previous governments had never truly shared power with Muslims and Christians, and had allocated powerless departments to them. “Opposition parties are falsely campaigning that a Minister from a particular caste has been appointed to the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department. We do not even know the caste of Mr. Ramesh [HR & CE Minister]. As far as the TVK is concerned, we have never approached elections on the basis of caste identity,” he said.

He also strongly condemned the remarks made by DMK leader and former Union Minister A. Raja on the IUML and the VCK joining the Cabinet.