Chennai, Nov 8 — Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker J.C.D. Prabhakar has issued notices to four former AIADMK legislators who joined the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), intensifying proceedings in a politically significant disqualification case stemming from the Assembly confidence vote earlier this year.
The four legislators have been directed to appear for hearings on November 10, 11 and 12. The Speaker is expected to hear final arguments on November 17 before deciding on the disqualification petitions.
The controversy dates back to May 13, when the Tamil Nadu Assembly witnessed a confidence vote involving the government.
During the proceedings, 25 AIADMK legislators allegedly defied their party whip and voted in favour of the government. After the vote, AIADMK whip Agri Krishnamoorthy submitted a petition to the Speaker seeking their disqualification under the Constitution's anti-defection provisions.
However, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami subsequently decided to withdraw the complaint against 21 legislators, effectively pardoning them for violating the party directive.
The party nevertheless pursued disqualification proceedings against four legislators who had subsequently resigned from the AIADMK and joined the TVK. Meanwhile, two other legislators, M.R. Vijayabhaskar and C. Vijayabhaskar, also submitted their resignations, bringing the number of legislators involved in the pending proceedings to six.
Krishnamoorthy subsequently approached the Madras High Court challenging the Speaker's decision to accept the resignations. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan upheld the resignations' validity, observing that they were genuine and voluntary.
The court also directed the Speaker to dispose of the pending disqualification petitions within two months.
Following the judicial directive, the Speaker accelerated the proceedings and scheduled personal hearings for the four former AIADMK legislators. Palaniswami's legal representatives are also expected to present their arguments during the hearings.
The proceedings have gained considerable political significance because Maragatham Kumaravel and Sathyabama, two legislators linked to the controversy, have already contested and won Assembly by-elections on TVK tickets.
An adverse ruling could raise questions about their eligibility to continue as legislators and contest future elections, depending on the decision's legal consequences.
With the final hearing scheduled for November 17, the Speaker's ruling is expected to have important implications for the TVK and the evolving political equations in Tamil Nadu.