DMK writes to TN Assembly secretary seeking no-confidence motion against Speaker

The DMK on Tuesday submitted a letter to Tamil Nadu Assembly Secretary A.M.P. Jamaludeen for a no-confidence motion against Speaker P. Dhanapal.

The DMK’s move came a day after party Working President and Leader of Opposition M.K. Stalin said his party will move a no-confidence motion against the Speaker in the backdrop of the February 18, 2017 trust vote which Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami won with a 122-11 margin.

“We have given a letter to the Assembly Secretary for bringing a no-confidence motion against Speaker Dhanapal,” Mr. Stalin told reporters at the Secretariat.

A copy of the letter has been submitted to the Speaker as well, he said.

“During the session on February 18, the Speaker acted with ulterior motives. On that basis, given that there is no confidence on him, we have submitted the letter seeking a no-confidence motion against him,” he said.

Mr. Stalin on Monday said the DMK would resort to the move against Mr. Dhanapal, accusing him of “deliberately harping on his community to malign” the party.

Mr. Stalin’s statement had come in response to Mr. Dhanapal’s charge on Saturday that he was perhaps targeted by the DMK for hailing from a particular community.

“When we see that the Speaker is deliberately harping on his community to malign us, it is very regrettable. It is a matter of shame, according to us, for Tamil Nadu,” Mr. Stalin had said.

“Therefore, we will move a no-confidence motion (against Mr. Dhanapal). Signatures of 34 of our MLAs are enough for that and the (Assembly) rules mandate that it (motion) should be taken up within 15 days,” he had said.

The DMK has 89 MLAs in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly.

On Saturday, amidst chaotic scenes involving the DMK which eventually led to eviction of its members en masse, the Palaniswami government won the trust vote.