India, May 11 -- Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay had not even begun his first day in office when a political row erupted over state song, 'Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu', being relegated to third place after the National Song and the National Anthem, during the swearing-in ceremony in Chennai.

Government events in Tamil Nadu, traditionally, begin with the rendition of the Tamil invocation song and conclude with the National Anthem. But at the ceremony held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, the sequence was altered. 'Vande Mataram' was played first, followed by the National Anthem, 'Jana Gana Mana', while 'Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu' came third, according to the official programme announcement.

The change in protocol quickly triggered cr...