ANTI-DEFECTION CASE DROPPED AGAINST 21 AIADMK REBELS AFTER EPS LETTER

Chennai: Tamil Nadu assembly speaker J C D Prabhakar on Tuesday said no disqualification proceedings would be initiated against the 21 AIADMK MLAs who supported the TVK govt during the confidence motion on May 13, in violation of the direction issued by AIADMK whip. However, Prabhakar said the process to initiate action against the four AIADMK MLAs who had resigned to join TVK has begun.

Prabhakar told reporters in Chennai on Tuesday that he has decided not to initiate action against them in the wake of a letter from AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami withdrawing his complaint against the 21 MLAs. The 21 legislators include senior AIADMK leaders C Ve Shanmugam, S P Velumani and C Vijaybaskar who had rebelled against EPS and supported TVK.

“I carefully examined the representations received from the AIADMK leadership and the relevant legal provisions. Based on that, I have decided to drop the proceedings against the 21 MLAs,” he said. Prabhakar referred to the provisions of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and said rebel legislators facing disqualification proceedings are entitled to submit their explanations within a stipulated period, ranging between 15 and 30 days.

He said EPS had submitted four separate representations condoning the conduct of the 21 MLAs and requesting that no action be taken against them under the anti-defection law, Prabhakar said.

The speaker said proceedings would continue against the four former AIADMK MLAs - Maragatham Kumaravel (Madurantakam), P Sathyabama (Dharapuram), S Jayakumar (Perundurai) and Esakki Subaya (Ambasamudram) - who resigned their seats and subsequently joined the TVK.

“Only after the completion of the process can I say whether they will be disqualified or not,” Prabhakar said.

He also clarified that the support extended by the 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs during the confidence motion remains valid and that any outcome of the disqualification proceedings would have no bearing on the voting during the trust vote.