Ve Vaithilingam

V. Vaithilingam, the son of politically significant V. Venkatasubba Reddiar, who was also the Chief Minister of Puducherry under the Congress Party at that time, was born on the fifth of October 1950 at Cuddalore in the then Madras State, which is now Tamil Nadu, India. He did his schooling and college education before getting into full-time politics, where he built his career with the Indian National Congress.

His election journey began with the Puducherry Legislative Assembly in the 1980s, but he soon got the hang of it and, with that, also became the ruler of the region, thus taking the ministerial portfolios early in his political career.

Vaithilingam was the first to take charge of Puducherry from 1991 to 1996 and then again from 2008 to 2011. At the same time, he was the chief minister responsible for governance projects and local government reforms. Between these terms, he was always there as a significant legislative leader and often played vital roles in the Congress legislative party.

He was appointed Speaker of the House after the Puducherry Assembly elections in 2016 and held this position until 2019, when he resigned to take up a national role. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Vaithilingam was elected as a member of parliament for Puducherry, and in 2024, he won the seat again, this time against the candidate from Bharatiya Janata Party.

Besides holding the legislative and executive positions, Vaithilingam was always the one to take on party duties. His appointment as the President of the Puducherry Pradesh Congress Committee came in June 2023, with the task of the party’s regional organisation being made stronger.

Presently, in 2026, he is still a member of Parliament and continues to lead the PPCC.