Chennai, Aug 25 (IANS) The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly witnessed heated exchanges on Tuesday over the absence of elected representatives in six constituencies following the resignation of their MLAs. The issue arose during the debate on demands for grants for natural resources, industries, information technology and Artificial Intelligence departments.
Participating in the discussion, DMK MLA Austin asked whom should residents of the six constituencies approach to raise their grievances in the absence of MLAs.
Responding to him, Minister K.A. Sengottaiyan said the government had appointed ministers in charge of all six constituencies. Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay had also taken steps to ensure that public complaints were heard and local requirements addressed, he said.
Austin, however, maintained that several problems remained unresolved. He argued that ministers assigned additional responsibility could not fully understand constituency-level issues, underscoring the need for elected representatives.
Former chief minister and AIADMK leader, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, intervened, saying that the very purpose of having MLAs was to provide dedicated representation. Ministers overseeing entire departments could not be expected to understand every local concern, he said.
Sengottaiyan replied that the government was equally keen to conduct elections in the six constituencies at the earliest.
“There is no alternative to holding elections, and we are interested in ensuring that they are conducted as soon as possible,” he said.
His remarks prompted strong protests from Palaniswami and other AIADMK members, triggering a verbal confrontation.
Speaker J.C.D. Prabhakar said certain comments connected with pending legal proceedings would be removed from the Assembly records.
Tension escalated after Palaniswami’s microphone was allegedly switched off. When Sengottaiyan referred to alleged political horse-trading, the Speaker advised him to avoid such remarks.
The minister then asked whether the withdrawal of the TVK candidate from the Edappadi constituency did not amount to horse-trading. Palaniswami strongly rejected the allegation, saying the candidate had not withdrawn but his nomination had been rejected.
He also questioned why the person concerned had left one party and joined the TVK. As Palaniswami continued speaking loudly, the Speaker rose from his chair and asked whether the House was being treated like a public meeting.
Palaniswami responded that he had no option but to stand if he was not allowed to speak. The Speaker urged him to remain calm and cautioned him against straining himself physically, before proceedings resumed amid continuing protests.
—IANS
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