When Jayalalithaa’s photo at Speaker’s desk made DMK MLAs uneasy

It is the usual practice for AIADMK leaders to keep the photo of late Chief Minister, J Jayalalithaa, on their table with the photo facing their visitors.

But, when the newly elected 13 DMK MLAs took pledge in the office of Tamil Nadu Speaker, P Dhanapal, they did not like the presence of Jayalalithaa’s photo on his table. A section of DMK MLAs protested and asked him to take the photo away as they did not want to see her face while being sworn in.

An adamant Dhanapal, however, refused to move the photo even by an inch. Meanwhile, when the DMK MLAs and functionaries including party president, M K Stalin, flooded the office, the photo of Jayalalithaa was turned towards the wall.

The photo was neither facing the Speaker nor the DMK MLAs but it was turned towards the wall on the fourth side and it remained in the same manner till the end of the swearing-in ceremony when the officials made it face in the original direction again.