DMK MLA suspended for session

After that the House adopted a resolution moved by Deputy Chief Minister and Leader of the House O Panneerselvam to suspend DMK MLA Anbazhagan, Speaker P Dhanapal said the suspension would continue till the next session when the House would reassemble for tabling the Budget, but later the suspension period was reduced till Thursday.

Replying to a request from DMK president and leader of the Opposition MK Stalin, the Speaker said the DMK MLA was suspended for this session which would end on January 9.

Earlier in the day, Deputy Speaker Pollachi R Jayaraman moved the motion of thanks on the Governor’s address. Participating in the debate, DMK MLA Anbazhagan sought to know on what basis Tamil Nadu as a state was ranked No.1 on the law and order front. He alleged that the Centre and the state were playing non-pragmatically by awarding the number one position for the state on governance.

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami in his reply said that the state government did not boast about the number one position, but it is the Centre that has given the number one state award based on several parameters and statistics.

Members of both the AIADMK and the DMK were up from their seats triggering tension leading to a heated exchange of words disrupting proceedings for more than 10 minutes. Deputy CM Panneerselvam moved a resolution seeking the eviction ofAnbazhagan and Speaker Dhanapal passed the resolution in the House. Upset over this, Anbazhagan tore the copies of the Governor’s address and threw at Speaker’s chair triggering unrest for some time.

“I prepared the whole night to speak on CAA and the irregularities in local body polls, but I was just given five minutes whereas the ruling party members ranging from CM, Deputy CM and Ministers were given 50 minutes to defend the BJP on CAA,” Chepauk legislator Anbazhagan told reporters. “I don’t know whether my act is right or wrong, but I just followed former CM Jayalalithaa, who had also torn the Governor’s speech copy, when DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi was CM,” Anbazhagan said justifying his act.