TN Speaker issues notice to 19 dissident AIADMK MLAs

Assembly speaker P Dhanapal, on Thursday, issued notices to the 19 legislators who wrote to Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao withdrawing their support to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisami asking why they should not be disqualified.

The development marked an escalation of the power struggle between the ruling AIADMK and its dissenting MLAs, who owe allegiance to sidelined deputy secretary of the party TTV Dinakaran.

The Speaker’s action came in the wake of Chief Government Whip K Rajendran recommending disqualification of the dissident MLAs citing the letter given to the Governor and their comments to the media against the CM. Rajendran claimed that the MLAs’ actions amounted to defection as per the 10th Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

“In my petition to the Speaker, I have cited Section 6 of the Members of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly (Disqualification on Ground of Defection) Rules, 1986 and urged him to disqualify the MLAs,” Rajendran told reporters at the Secretariat.

MLAs loyal to Dinakaran, however, were quick to dismiss the notice and said they would challenge in the court if they were disqualified. “The Whip’s recommendation is not valid as per law,” said MLA P Vetrivel.

Meanwhile, MLA Thanga Tamilselvan said that it was an attempt …read more